Next season's schedule

[fastlax16]

Golden opportunity for a new hire to overhaul the roster through the portal and hit the ground running. It's an easier schedule than the one Cignetti used last season to spring board the Hoosiers. As things currently stand, none of next season's opponents are ranked in the top 20. The team won't need to be elite to have an elite record.

 

[BobPSU92]

Golden?

 

[fastlax16]

Golden?

Maybe he can bring Flacco with him to play QB. He's been a starting QB in all of the other AFC North states so it should appeal to him.

 

[BUFFALO LION]

Golden opportunity for a new hire to overhaul the roster through the portal and hit the ground running. It's an easier schedule than the one Cignetti used last season to spring board the Hoosiers. As things currently stand, none of next season's opponents are ranked in the top 20. The team won't need to be elite to have an elite record.

Sounds like we could have saved a few million dollars then. Spent the money on players instead of rolling the dice at the craps table with a new coach.

 

[fastlax16]

Sounds like we could have saved a few million dollars then. Spent the money on players instead of rolling the dice at the craps table with a new coach.

All the fire Franklin folks got what they wanted so can't look back. Whoever the new coach is better hit the ground running because as things stand now the 2028 schedule ramps up the difficulty quite a bit after relatively easy schedules the next 2 years.

 

[Pa$ky859]

Maybe he can bring Flacco with him to play QB. He's been a starting QB in all of the other AFC North states so it should appeal to him.

I would love for Al Golden to leave my hometown Bengals. Penn State is the only job i don’t want him anywhere near.

 

[EricStratton-RushChairman]

All the fire Franklin folks got what they wanted so can't look back. Whoever the new coach is better hit the ground running because as things stand now the 2028 schedule ramps up the difficulty quite a bit after relatively easy schedules the next 2 years.

If the Fire Franklin group got what we wanted, he would have been fired 10 minutes after blowing the 4th quarter lead against OSU in 2018 (repeating the 2016 Rose Bowl and 2017 OSU 4th quarter debacles)

 

[PaForest75]

Sounds like we could have saved a few million dollars then. Spent the money on players instead of rolling the dice at the craps table with a new coach.

Nobody knows if he could have ever rallied them to win another game. They flat out quit on him. This coaching stuff is almost so bad you wonder why anyone would take it on. College kids can just decide they're not playing anymore, and you're out just like that.

I think it was so bad at the stadium after that Northwestern game there is no way he could have returned to the sideline there. Whatever happens now, it had to be someone else after that game.

 

[fastlax16]

Well better late than never. I look forward to our future prosperity.

Can you point me to some posts of yours with desired replacements from the last 7 or so seasons?

 

[fastlax16]

Nobody knows if he could have ever rallied them to win another game. They flat out quit on him. This coaching stuff is almost so bad you wonder why anyone would take it on. College kids can just decide they're not playing anymore, and you're out just like that.

I think it was so bad at the stadium after that Northwestern game there is no way he could have returned to the sideline there. Whatever happens now, it had to be someone else after that game.

yup the bottom fell out during the northwestern game.

 

[Lion84]

Almost everyone I know that are Alumni supported Franklin all the way up until this year after the death spiral started - coaches most of the time do have a shelf life except for a very few. I guess we could have kept him and be happy with 10 wins over 9 cupcakes and a few teams with a heart beat that we were also favored to beat and losses to everyone lese both away and home. We might take a step back or maybe not time will tell but it's always about the money today like it or not and you need to sell $15K suite licenses you better look like your are trying to win it all at least.

 

[LMTLION]

So you’re saying it’s a schedule that not even Rhule could F up?

 

[psuro]

Golden opportunity for a new hire to overhaul the roster through the portal and hit the ground running. It's an easier schedule than the one Cignetti used last season to spring board the Hoosiers. As things currently stand, none of next season's opponents are ranked in the top 20. The team won't need to be elite to have an elite record.

Figured that out all on your own, did ya?

 

[fastlax16]

Figured that out all on your own, did ya?

the people on here talking about rebuilding seasons haven’t.

 

[LB99]

Why do people think Cignetti’s success can be duplicated? He brought 30 players with him from a national championship level roster at JMU. They had all played with him together at JMU. He didn’t just randomly grab a bunch of players out of the portal ala Colorado. His success is going to be very hard to duplicate via the portal.

 

[Binder74]

Almost everyone I know that are Alumni supported Franklin all the way up until this year after the death spiral started - coaches most of the time do have a shelf life except for a very few. I guess we could have kept him and be happy with 10 wins over 9 cupcakes and a few teams with a heart beat that we were also favored to beat and losses to everyone lese both away and home. We might take a step back or maybe not time will tell but it's always about the money today like it or not and you need to sell $15K suite licenses you better look like your are trying to win it all at least.

I supported him until the Ucla game. He and the team just had that same look as the covid season. I liked the guy and he represented PSU well but looked totally lost.

 

[Nitt1300]

7-5

 

[BobPSU92]

7-5

I don’t appreciate your optimism.

3-9

 

[BUFFALO LION]

I guess we could have kept him and be happy with 10 wins over 9 cupcakes and a few teams with a heart beat that we were also favored to beat and losses to everyone lese both away and home.

Ya think???? 10-2 gets us into the Playoffs most years now. Especially if we go to a 4+4+2+2+1+3 model. Then anything can happen.

Our biggest opponents to future success isn’t Ohio State or Michigan. It’s our own irrational, brain dead fan base.

 

[Calabrin]

I supported him until the Ucla game. He and the team just had that same look as the covid season. I liked the guy and he represented PSU well but looked totally lost.

Exactly. The UCLA game was the Rubicon as far as making excuses. Everyone had to know Franklin's seat was on fire after that debacle. And when the response was losing to crappy Northwestern the following week... I don't understand how there are still people out there engaging in this passive-aggressive rhetoric about the "Fire Franklin Crew".

You have got to be kidding me.

 

[johnmpsu]

Exactly. The UCLA game was the Rubicon as far as making excuses. Everyone had to know Franklin's seat was on fire after that debacle. And when the response was losing to crappy Northwestern the following week... I don't understand how there are still people out there engaging in this passive-aggressive rhetoric about the "Fire Franklin Crew".

You have got to be kidding me.

If the reports are true that he went to Kraft for a raise/extension and was told no so he then went over Kraft's head. To me that was the kiss of death. I don't know how you don't fire him if that was true.

If true he may have a tough time getting a top job. Nobody likes that type of behavior. Nobody wants to potentially dealing with that kind of behavior.

 

[BUFFALO LION]

If the reports are true that he went to Kraft for a raise/extension and was told no so he then went over Kraft's head. To me that was the kiss of death. I don't know how you don't fire him if that was true.

If true he may have a tough time getting a top job. Nobody likes that type of behavior. Nobody wants to potentially dealing with that kind of behavior.

Which probably makes him even happier. No “top job”, the more lunch money he can steal out of the pockets of the idiots that wanted him fired.

 

[Electric Lion]

Ya think???? 10-2 gets us into the Playoffs most years now. Especially if we go to a 4+4+2+2+1+3 model. Then anything can happen.

Our biggest opponents to future success isn’t Ohio State or Michigan. It’s our own irrational, brain dead fan base.

Do you include yourself in that brain dead fan base? He did it to himself. Third offensive coordinator in, what, 5 years? A DC he begged Kraft to pay for who seems like the absolute worst guy for this year's team. Then he goes over Kraft's head to wrangle an extension. He proclaims this his best team ever, then they go out and collapse, he looks lost, and has no answers. Exactly what are fans supposed to think at that point?

 

[psuno1]

Do you include yourself in that brain dead fan base? He did it to himself. Third offensive coordinator in, what, 5 years? A DC he begged Kraft to pay for who seems like the absolute worst guy for this year's team. Then he goes over Kraft's head to wrangle an extension. He proclaims this his best team ever, then they go out and collapse, he looks lost, and has no answers. Exactly what are fans supposed to think at that point?

Yeah but it's never James fault, just give him more years and money on his contract that will solve everything.

 

[Sharkies]

Sounds like we could have saved a few million dollars then. Spent the money on players instead of rolling the dice at the craps table with a new coach.

Honestly, this is better money spent than spending $10m+/yr on a head coach. Find a guy willing to do it for $2m and spend the rest on roster management.

 

[BUFFALO LION]

Do you include yourself in that brain dead fan base? He did it to himself. Third offensive coordinator in, what, 5 years? A DC he begged Kraft to pay for who seems like the absolute worst guy for this year's team. Then he goes over Kraft's head to wrangle an extension. He proclaims this his best team ever, then they go out and collapse, he looks lost, and has no answers. Exactly what are fans supposed to think at that point?

“The fans are supposed to think” “10 wins” is a heck of a lot better than 2026 and 2027 now being nothing more than a complete dumpster fire. Nothing sells seats like knowing you have little to no chance at any Playoff appearance for AT LEAST 2 years.

So the guy had a bad year. Nobody’s freakin perfect. And now we’re stuck with the new guy having to start at square one with a new recruiting calendar that apparently Kraft never bothered to inquire about. Why the heck aren’t we spending all that supposedly endless amount money we have to waste on unproven new coaches to outspend Ohio State and everyone else for freakin football players??

 

[Calabrin]

If the reports are true that he went to Kraft for a raise/extension and was told no so he then went over Kraft's head. To me that was the kiss of death. I don't know how you don't fire him if that was true.

If true he may have a tough time getting a top job. Nobody likes that type of behavior. Nobody wants to potentially dealing with that kind of behavior.

The extension/raise angle certainly adds a level of intrigue to this whole fiasco.

You have to question Franklin's state of mind heading into the season. Conflicted? Likely. On the one hand, he feels he has the necessary components to make a serious run. On the other, he feels jilted because the AD wasn't interested in paying him what he, Franklin, felt he was worth.

Still, Franklin had to know that making a run at a natty would give him an insurmountable degree of leverage as far as getting the money he wanted after this season.

Did he simply choke under the pressure?
Is this team just not very good, despite all the hype?

I went into this season not buying the hype. I could not for the life of me figure out how you lose two first round NFL picks -- probably the #1 players at their respective positions -- and somehow the team is going to be BETTER. The math does not add up.

I had no idea where the hype on Drew Allar was coming from. That was a total head-scratcher.

I certainly did not expect them to be *this* bad, but I didn't see the on-paper top-contender that so many others were talking about.

 

[Calabrin]

So the guy had a bad year.

...in a year where he publicly said this was the best team, and the best staff he's ever had.

Then the team looked bad against three feeble OOC opponents.

Then they lost yet again to the first decent opponent they played despite having every advantage in their favor.

Then he got 42 points hung on him by an 0-4 team that had no coaches, and 2 days to prepare.

I don't think you grasp the significance of this loss. It's one of the worst losses in the history of college football, not just because Penn State didn't win. But because of the WAY they lost. They were 21 point favorites. They got 42 points hung on them by an offense that was averaging 14 points per game.

The Bruins got most of the their offense just from their QB scrambling, and the Penn State defense didn't even try to do anything about it.

And to cap it off, they went out of the following week and lost AGAIN to a bad program that is almost always the doormat of the conference.

No one at any program can have a season like this and expect to suffer zero consequences.

 

[kgilbert78]

I went into this season not buying the hype. I could not for the life of me figure out how you lose two first round NFL picks -- probably the #1 players at their respective positions -- and somehow the team is going to be BETTER. The math does not add up.

THIS. Still a holding call once in a while might have made a difference. I'll bet that DDS draws more holding calls in his first two games in the NFL than he'll draw all year in this conference.

 

[PSU87]

...in a year where he publicly said this was the best team, and the best staff he's ever had.

Then the team looked bad against three feeble OOC opponents.

Then they lost yet again to the first decent opponent they played despite having every advantage in their favor.

Then he got 42 points hung on him by an 0-4 team that had no coaches, and 2 days to prepare.

I don't think you grasp the significance of this loss. It's one of the worst losses in the history of college football, not just because Penn State didn't win. But because of the WAY they lost. They were 21 point favorites. They got 42 points hung on them by an offense that was averaging 14 points per game.

The Bruins got most of the their offense just from their QB scrambling, and the Penn State defense didn't even try to do anything about it.

And to cap it off, they went out of the following week and lost AGAIN to a bad program that is almost always the doormat of the conference.

No one at any program can have a season like this and expect to suffer zero consequences.

Agree completely. People are comparing this to 1999, but this is so much worse. The 2 seasons don't even belong in the same conversation.

Does Toledo even compare to the UCLA loss?

 

[LMTLION]

The extension/raise angle certainly adds a level of intrigue to this whole fiasco.

You have to question Franklin's state of mind heading into the season. Conflicted? Likely. On the one hand, he feels he has the necessary components to make a serious run. On the other, he feels jilted because the AD wasn't interested in paying him what he, Franklin, felt he was worth.

Still, Franklin had to know that making a run at a natty would give him an insurmountable degree of leverage as far as getting the money he wanted after this season.

Did he simply choke under the pressure?
Is this team just not very good, despite all the hype?

I went into this season not buying the hype. I could not for the life of me figure out how you lose two first round NFL picks -- probably the #1 players at their respective positions -- and somehow the team is going to be BETTER. The math does not add up.

I had no idea where the hype on Drew Allar was coming from. That was a total head-scratcher.

I certainly did not expect them to be *this* bad, but I didn't see the on-paper top-contender that so many others were talking about.

I think it was a combination of choking under pressure and being unhappy with his salary negotiations. I think both contributed to his poor attitude and fed into the team.

 

[laKavosiey-st lion]

Well better late than never. I look forward to our future prosperity.

Can you point me to some posts of yours with desired replacements from the last 7 or so seasons?

Not our job.

 

[BUFFALO LION]

Agree completely. People are comparing this to 1999, but this is so much worse. The 2 seasons don't even belong in the same conversation.

Does Toledo even compare to the UCLA loss?

Toledo? First loss to a MAC team ever? At Home, not 3,000 miles away? No.

But you have to give the Administration credit back then. They allowed Joe 5 years to dig himself out of that hole, with 2002 being a pretty good year. 2005 to 2011, he had a 77% winning percentage with two legitimate sniffs at participating in the National Championship Game.

 

[PSU87]

Toledo? First loss to a MAC team ever? At Home, not 3,000 miles away? No.

But you have to give the Administration credit back then. They allowed Joe 5 years to dig himself out of that hole, with 2002 being a pretty good year. 2005 to 2011, he had a 77% winning percentage with two legitimate sniffs at participating in the National Championship Game.

Was that 2000 team supposed to contend for a National Championship?

That 2000 team had already lost badly to a mediocre USC team.

UCLA was winless, averaging 14 points a game, and had no coaching staff. That Toledo team ended up 10- 1 if memory serves.

Toledo loss was obviously bad, but I still think UCLA was worse.