James Franklin fires back at questions about his legacy after Ohio State loss

Everyone knew Saturday could be a legacy-defining game for James Franklin and the Penn State football program. But ultimately, the outcome did not go how anyone in Happy Valley would have liked, as the Nittany Lions fell 20-12 to No. 3 Ohio State. The loss now extends Franklin’s dreadful record against the Buckeyes and top-ranked teams in general. But is the Penn State football coach concerned about his legacy after Saturday’s loss?

Disappointing record against Ohio State, top teams haunts Penn State football

By now, everyone has seen the graphics. With Saturday’s crushing loss, Penn State football is now 1-9 against Ohio State under James Franklin. The Nittany Lions are 4-15 against the Buckeyes and Michigan since Franklin took over the program in 2014.

Although Franklin touts a near .700 winning percentage since coming to Happy Valley, his record against top teams leaves much to be desired. With Saturday’s loss, Penn State is now 13-23 against AP Top 25 teams during Franklin’s tenure, including a 2-13 record on the road. Against top 10 teams, Franklin is 3-16 with no road wins in 10 attempts.

James Franklin is 84-37 at Penn State, but …

3-16 vs AP Top 10 opponents (0-10 on the road)
13-23 vs AP Top 25 opponents (2-13 on the road).

Penn State hosts Michigan on Nov. 11.

— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) October 21, 2023

Does James Franklin think it’s fair to criticize his record against top teams?

While Penn State football has experienced great success over the last decade, James Franklin’s abysmal record against top teams has left a bad taste in the mouths of many Nittany Lions fans.

Not surprisingly, Franklin was asked after the game if Saturday’s loss to Ohio State was a referendum on his tenure in Happy Valley. He didn’t answer if the defeat is indicative of his time at Penn State, instead choosing to focus on the game at hand.

“I totally get it. That’s a good football team,” Franklin said. “What I’ll talk about is today. We lost to a really good football team on the road. We had our chances, we battled, we weren’t able to capitalize. Big picture things — I’ll be happy to talk about that at some point. But right now, I want to talk about, we lost to a really good football team on the road. Didn’t make enough plays when we needed it. And I think it’s a fair question. I get the question. But, right now, I’m worried about [this game].”

The response is a vast juxtaposition from five years ago, where Franklin went on a diatribe about taking the program “from great to elite” after losing to Ohio State. Fast forward to 2023, and it feels that very little has changed. 

While no one in the Nittany Lions’ locker room is happy with the result on the field Saturday, the truth is that the goal of reaching the College Football Playoff is still attainable. But doing so will take a significant turnaround from what we witnessed against the Buckeyes. Penn State football faces games versus Indiana and at Maryland before a showdown with No. 2 Michigan on November 11.

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