James Franklin risks family admonishing him to illustrate Penn State atmosphere

On3 imageby:Kaiden Smith09/28/22

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Penn State head coach James Franklin is in his ninth year as the head coach for the Nittany Lions, and during his time has built many relationships. From assistant coaches moving on to head coaching jobs, to players moving on to the NFL, Franklin was asked how well he keeps in touch with those that used to be in the program.

“I’m not as good of that as I’d like to be,” Franklin admitted. “I’m one of these guys where I hope our relationships are strong enough that when we see each other and do talk, it’s great and they understand how I feel about them, and that is unconditional and consistent. But I’m not a write a bunch of letters, or send a bunch of texts messages, or phone calls to check in with people.”

Franklin did mention the names of his former assistants that he has kept in touch with this year, as well as former players that were able to be on the sideline for their most recent home game against Central Michigan.

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“But yeah I’ve talked to Brent Pry this year, I’ve talked to Ricky Rahne multiple times this year, I’ve talked to Charles Huff, so I think that’s still happening. I’ve got buddies in the NFL that reach out that’re coming, and then players, obviously having Pat [Freiermuth] and Marcus [Allen] back this weekend was awesome,” Franklin said. “I think it’s one of the things that’s really cool about Penn State, that’s why I love when a lot of these guys can get drafted or picked up by regional teams because it just helps with that.”

Franklin also mentioned that the family aspect of Penn State doesn’t just impact him, but his wife and two daughters as well, as he shared a story that may not have him in good graces at the Franklin household this week.

“I probably shouldn’t say this because I’ll get in trouble at home, but it’s a good story it connects the dots, I’ll take the punishment,” Franklin prefaced his story saying. “Marcus Allen comes up to me, I don’t know if it was right before the game or after the game, he’s like ‘Shola’s got a boyfriend?’. The fact that he knew that, because you’ve gotta remember as you guys do they were like teeny, and they’ve grown up obviously. But it’s just cool that we’re able to have that relationship and that my daughters have these big brothers that look out for them and care for them.”

The anecdote may embarrass Franklin’s daughter a little bit, but the obvious closeness coach Franklin has with his former players and staff is not, as he continues to strive toward creating a family-oriented culture at Penn State.

“That’s really important to me and I think it’s really important to Penn State, that sense of family and community,” Franklin said.