Blue White Illustrated

a new contract with the university. The details had not been released as of mid- December, but the length of the new pact was known: It extends through the 2025 season. Franklin took over the Penn State foot- ball program in January 2014 and helped rebuild it after the NCAA imposed major sanctions in the summer of 2012. Over the past four seasons, he and his staff have guided the Lions to a 41-11 record, compiling the seventh-best winning percentage among Power Five programs over that period. Only Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia and Wisconsin have fared better. Following the announcement of the new contract, Franklin said he was grateful for the opportunity that Penn State has provided him to return to his native Pennsylvania after launching his head coaching career with a successful three-year stint at Vanderbilt. "It's not often a coach gets an opportu- nity to move back to their home state and coach the team they grew up watching," he said. "It's even more rare that it's a school as rich in history and tradition as Penn State. It's been an honor and privi- lege to be the head coach of the Penn State football program for the last six years. "It's gratifying to work at a university where the administration cares as much about what happens in the classroom and community as it does about wins and losses. I love Penn State, our players and our dedicated coaches and staff. I'm proud to continue this journey with them and grateful that President [Eric] Barron, [athletic director] Sandy Bar- bour and the Board of Trustees share my vision for continuing our pursuit of ex- cellence." Under the terms of his previous con- tract, Franklin's compensation topped $5 million for the first time in 2019. However, he was being mentioned as a potential candidate for other high-pro- file coaching jobs, including some that were not yet vacant. His name came up most frequently in connection with the Florida State job, which became avail- able when the Seminoles fired Willie Taggart in November. He was also cited as a potential candidate for the USC job if the Trojans were to fire Clay Helton. After Penn State wrapped up its regular season with a 27-6 victory over Rutgers, Franklin said he was eager for the specu- lation about his future to end. S I T E L I N E S B W I . R I V A L S . C O M R E A D E R S W E I G H I N O N J A M E S F R A N K L I N ' S C O N T R A C T E X T E N S I O N I know you don't need to have Blue and White goggles on to see the trajec- tory James Franklin has taken Penn State towards both on the field and off. I love our kids and I'm re-establishing a love affair with the coach. I'm just tak- ing it a tad slow until we beat Ohio State and make inroads to doing that with in- novative game-planning and innovative play-calling along with getting the players to make Penn State a true threat to Ohio State's dominance in the Big Ten. amalone You have to spend money to make money (see every argument I've ever made about men's hoops). I'm not going to derail this thread with that, however. Penn State football pays for not only the "bells and whistles" of any other pro- gram, but also for the "nuts and bolts" too. IF we can get to the point of be- coming Clemson (and I DO think that one of Penn State, Notre Dame, Michi- gan, Wisconsin, Washington, etc. will do that, hopefully it's us) you're going to get so much more money for the other programs from that success. But you need to be willing to engage in the arms race to do it. By the way, huge credit to Sandy Barbour and the administration for getting this done as well. She didn't hire Franklin but now has extended him twice and has (with huge help from Franklin) ostensibly secured funding to hopefully get our facilities into the top 10-15 range befitting our program. I'm really interested to see what the param- eters of the contract look like in that re- gard. berg3438 I've felt all along that sanity would prevail because money talks. The invest- ments in salaries and facilities will liter- ally pay for themselves. This isn't that hard to figure out. It's about revenue, not expenses. Too many people don't understand that. By making these in- vestments, they at the very least protect revenue and more likely increase rev- enue substantially. Howie'81 It was really a no-brainer. This is a huge day for Penn State football. Not just because of Franklin but for the advance- ment he embodies. I was really dreading the day when Penn State let him walk and kept milking the cow that PSU foot- ball is. It's about time they move that cow into a nicer barn... JackBurton85 Should I win Mega Millions tonight, I will gladly donate 20 million for facili- ties upgrades, with a portion going to basketball. Just sayin'. MarkPSU This is a good move for all parties in- volved. James Franklin wasn't staying at Penn State unless there was an invest- ment in the program. He wants what we all want: playoff appearances and a na- tional championship. Even if you ques- tion his game day coaching acumen like some on here like to do, it's hard to deny that this is the right move for the fore- seeable future to keep Penn State on the cusp of taking the next step and, hope- fully, taking that step. CFett This is great news on so many levels. Today is the first day of a new era. We have officially entered the race to be a perennial top-five program. VuonoNYC Glad to see we got our man. Congrats to Coach Franklin. DonP74 I'm very glad to know James Franklin will be with us for a long time. As an old coach, I appreciate how excellent a man he is. rtrexler

• Cover