WATCH: James Franklin addresses frustration of Penn State football fans following Oregon loss
James Franklin found himself in a familiar spot late Saturday night: responding to an exasperated Penn State football fanbase. Listen to what the Nittany Lions coach had to say following another heartbreaking loss.
With 12:25 remaining in the fourth quarter of Saturday night’s clash between Penn State football and Oregon, running back Jordon Davison found the end zone to give the Ducks a commanding 17-3 lead. Cries of “Fire Franklin” broke out among the historic White Out crowd, a response to an evening void of offensive production but filled with missed opportunities.
Fifty-seven minutes later, Drew Allar lofted a pass to the short side of the field intended for Luke Reynolds. Instead, the pass found the hands of Oregon defensive back Dillon Thieneman, giving the Ducks the 30-24 win in double overtime and silencing the masses of Beaver Stadium.
And although the Nittany Lions rallied for a ferocious comeback in the hour in between those two moments, in the end, the feeling of frustration for the Penn State football faithful was the same.
After the game, James Franklin addressed the anger expressed by many Nittany Lions fans. It was a discussion that has become all too familiar for a coach who is now 4-21 against top-10 opponents since arriving in Happy Valley 12 years ago.
“Yeah, we have a passionate fan base,” he said. “111,000 [fans in Beaver Stadium on Saturday night] – the environment was awesome. They’re passionate.
“When we win, there’s nothing better. When we lose, there’s nothing worse. I get it. I get the frustration that comes with a fan base that is invested and cares. I get it.”
James Franklin addresses another heartbreaking Penn State football loss
Ending September at 3-1, the Nittany Lions now face another test: hitting the road for the first time this season. The Blue and White will look to overcome Saturday’s crushing defeat and avoid an upset loss next weekend against UCLA in Pasadena.
“The way college football is today, there’s going to be very few teams that finish the end of the season unscathed,” Franklin said. “We’ve got to learn from this. We need to have a great week next week. We’ve got to tune out all the noise, and we’ve got to get better from this and get on a roll for the rest of the season.”
You can watch everything that James Franklin had to say following his program’s first loss of the year on the Basic Blues Nation YouTube page.
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Matt is a co-owner and Editor of Basic Blues Nation. Launched in 2022, Basic Blues Nation is one of the fastest-growing websites covering all Penn State athletics. Matt is also a credentialed member of the Penn State football beat, and is a member of the Football Writers Association of America.
