WATCH: James Franklin addresses failure to publicly decline USC job
Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke to reporters Wednesday about the USC coaching position and whether he has interest in the job. Franklin declared that he is not going to make comments to the media, he is only concerned with having private conversations with his team and staff.
James Franklin on not addressing USC position
In comments made to the media on Wednesday, Franklin stated that he had already spoken with his team and staff about whether or not he would take the newly available USC head coaching job. Franklin declared that he would not be speaking with the media or anybody outside of his team about the USC position.
“I’ve found in practice over time that really no matter what you say people aren’t happy with it,” explained Franklin. “So I’ve decided I’m going to handle this internally and talk to our team. It happens every single year. I’m not worried about distractions in the media and with the fans. I’m worried about my team. So I talked to my staff about it, I talked to my players about it.”
Franklin was then asked how this would affect Penn State recruiting and if he had explained his plans to recruits. Franklin joked that he would indeed speak with his recruits privately and that the media was likely to contact them to ask what he had said.
“We’ll address it with the recruits as well, so my conversations with the recruits [and] my conversations with my team will happen,” continued Franklin. “I know you’ll call every one of them and ask what I said. I’ll have conversations with them. But again, having conversations with the media and having conversations with anybody else — I’m concerned about my team.”
Penn State whiteout game
After opening the season with a great road win against 12th-ranked Wisconsin, Franklin hoped to capitalize on the momentum Penn State built.
This week’s matchup for Penn State is a home game against the Auburn Tigers who managed to score 60 points their opening week. Franklin asked fans to start a sellout streak for Penn State in their home of Beaver Stadium in preparation for their Sep. 18 game.
The Nittany Lions head coach called on fans to make Happy Valley a dominant home environment for his team this year.
“It would really be powerful if we started a sellout streak in Beaver Stadium, create a home field advantage like no other in college football! Let’s come together as a community like never before and show the world why this is ‘Happy Valley’! #WeAre. Let’s do it TOGETHER!”
The game was designated the first White Out game of the season for Penn State, a game where the entirety of the Penn State stadium dresses in all-white attire in a show of fan support unlike any other.
ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit has previously expressed his love of the Penn State crowd experience, calling the White Out game the best atmosphere in college football.
“It’s the best atmosphere, for me, in college football,” Herbstreit told reporters in 2019 while in town for a Penn State White Out game. “It’s just something about — not just the noise — but the energy and the pride that’s within that stadium. The way they sing along — like every person singing Sweet Caroline. I don’t know, it just feels like family, it feels like community, it feels like the fans have their team’s back. More so than any other situation or stadium that I’ve been in. A true test of that is when things go bad, the crowd gets even louder. Because instead of getting quieter, they get louder to try to pull their team home to a victory.”