James Franklin says it means more for Pennsylvania kids to play for Penn State

There’s nothing fans love more than a hometown kid. Luckily for Penn State fans, their kids love playing for their hometown, and head coach James Franklin knows it.

With 40 players from Pennsylvania on the Nittany Lions roster, Franklin runs recruiting in the Quaker State. Franklin believes putting on that Nittany Navy just means more to kids from the program’s backyard.

“It means more to those guys when they’re on the field representing their home state,” Franklin said in an interview with abc27 Sports Director Allie Berube. “Whether people are watching this show or others shows throughout the state of Pennsylvania, they see our players thriving in this environment.”

While Franklin never played for Penn State, he knows the feeling of competing for a hometown school. The 51-year-old coach was born and raised in Langhorne, Pa. Franklin went on to play for East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania. While there, Franklin set seven school records and was a NCAA Division II player of the year nominee in 1994.

Franklin wants it to be known Penn State helps players find success both on and off the field. When Berube brought up former Penn State star Micah Parsons, Franklin brought a surprising angle to the discussion.

“You brought up Micah Parsons. I think he’s the perfect example,” Franklin said. “Not only has Micah thrived from a football perspective, but Micah graduated from Penn State in three years. This is a very, very challenging and competitive school, take football out of it. And, he came here and thrived.”

As one of the top defensive players in the league, Parsons is thriving in the NFL, as well. Nonetheless, Franklin believes you don’t have to be 6-foot-3 freak athlete to be a part of the Penn State family. You can be a modest fan from the countryside in Pennsylvania.

“I want [fans] to feel connected. I want them to feel like this represents the state of Pennsylvania,” Franklin said. “That represents them the right way in terms of blue-collar, hard-nosed, but doing things the right way and with class. I don’t care where you’re at in the state of Pennsylvania, that you recognize that this is your land-grant university that represents the entire commonwealth.”