James Franklin Had ‘Pissed Some People Off’ Prior to PSU Firing, Former Staffer Says

A former Penn State football staffer provided some additional insight this week into the school’s decision to fire head coach James Franklin.

Speaking to Bruce Feldman and Ralph D. Russo of The Athletic, the anonymous former staffer said: “I think the players like James. Most of them do, but he had been there so long, and he had pissed some people off there.”

Franklin spent 12 seasons as the head coach at PSU following a three-year stint at Vanderbilt. He led the Nittany Lions to a 104-45 record and took them all the way to the College Football Playoff semifinals last season.

However, a three-game losing streak this season proved to be the final straw, leading to his firing.

After starting 2025 with a 3-0 record, Penn State looked like a national title contender once again, but the wheels fell off.

Following a heartbreaking, 30-24 loss to Oregon in overtime, Penn State lost to a UCLA team that was winless entering the game and then a Northwestern team that was 3-2 and unranked.

With the Nittany Lions sitting at 3-3, Franklin was fired on Sunday and replaced by Terry Smith on an interim basis.

Although Franklin orchestrated six double-digit-win seasons at Penn State, last season marked the first time he got the team into the CFP.

Meanwhile, Big Ten foes Michigan and Ohio State won the national championship in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

A former Penn State administrator suggested to Feldman and Russo that Franklin’s naysayers were never going to be happy regardless of what he did due to their loyalty to late head coach Joe Paterno, saying: “Any success James had was seen as a slight to the Paterno legacy.”

While shocking, given that Penn State won 10 or more games in three straight seasons entering 2025, it can be argued that a change may have been needed in order to get the Nittany Lions over the hump.

Penn State faces a massive uphill climb to even make the CFP this year with three losses already, but choosing the right successor for Franklin will be the key to sustained success moving forward.

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