People Are Mad At Penn State For Firing James Franklin, And They're Wrong
If you think this was unexpected, you haven't been paying attention.
Whenever a school fires their coach, the court of public opinion is usually split on the matter.
Two factions generally form after a high-profile axing: one consists of exasperated fans who think the hammer should've fallen long ago, and the other is a smattering of optimistic supporters of the program and sports reporters who preach things like "patience" and castigate others for their "unrealistic expectations."
It's been just over 24 hours since Penn State fired coach James Franklin, and I've already seen an alarming number of opinions online that fall into the latter category of those two aforementioned factions.
With all due respect, these are terrible takes, and I'll tell you exactly why.
The Franklin Firing Was A Long Time Coming
There was nothing "shocking" or "fast" about firing Franklin.
For starters, let's take a trip back to early August.
Penn State was a preseason top-three team and the favorite to win the Big Ten and make a national championship run.
Fast-forward to October, and the Nittany Lions are sitting at 3-3 without a snowball's chance in Hell at winning a national title.
That alone should be grounds for a coach's seat being scorching hot, but this year is just the cherry on top of Franklin's disappointing tenure in Happy Valley.
"How could you fire a guy who just went to the College Football Playoff semifinals?"
I'll tell you how!
It's been repeated ad-nauseum for a long time, but Franklin's 4-21 record against top-10 opponents is unacceptable for a coach at a program with any sort of championship aspirations.
Speaking of championships, it's been nine years since Penn State won a conference title under Franklin, and it's the only "banner" they've raised since he arrived back in 2014.
Nothing about that screams "elite," which is the bigger issue.
Penn State Should Not Have To "Adjust" Their Expectations
Was James Franklin a good coach?
I truly believe so, but he wasn't "elite," and that is why he's no longer employed by Penn State.
At a school like Penn State, the expectations are and should be championships.
Winning 10 games and getting bounced in the first or second round of the playoffs is an exemplary year for 95% of programs in the country.
But for the Nittany Lions, the standards are just different.
Haughty sports writers yelling at Penn State fans for having "unrealistic expectations" is a joke.
Many of these people were alive to see their school win the 1986 National Championship, and that should be the goal every year.
No, Penn State doesn't have to win the title every year, but they should be in the conversation.
And they should employ a coach who gives them the chance to do so, not piss down his leg every time he has to play a similarly talented team.
Franklin wasn't fired because he was 3-3 in 2025.
He was fired for never winning anything of consequence in the past decade.
Penn State may end up hiring another coach who fails to win them a championship, and they might be right back in the same spot they're in now, and that's okay.
They owe it to their fans, alumni, and boosters to at least take a shot.
Anything less would be a lowering of expectations, which would all but signify the death of a once proud program.