James Franklin press conference: Expectations haven’t changed at Penn State

Penn State football returned to the practice field on Wednesday with only four weeks separating the Nittany Lions from the most anticipated season in recent memory. The talk of much of college football this offseason, expectations feel higher than ever in Happy Valley this fall.

But inside the walls of the Lasch Football Building, that isn’t necessarily the case. Frequently this spring and summer, James Franklin has pushed back on the narrative that 2025 is a “make or break” year in Happy Valley. Speaking at the Nittany Lions’ media day Saturday – the first time he’s met with reporters since training camp started – the 12th-year head coach provided his longest explanation to date on the topic.

You can find Franklin’s full comments on the expectations entering 2025 below:

I think you guys have heard me say this. I don’t really feel like the expectations have changed. You know, the expectations in the Lasch Football Building are always high. The expectations at Beaver Stadium are always high. The expectations in this community are always really high. That’s a big reason why I came here. That’s a big reason why our players chose here.

To your point, are there more conversations and maybe heightened conversations going on nationally? Yes, but I think last year is a perfect example, right? We were a drive away from playing for a national championship last year, and 99% of the programs in the country would be jacked about that season and how it went. And I don’t know if that was necessarily the case here, right? We win 13 games. Like I mentioned, we were a few points and a few drives away from playing for the national championship, and people were pissed. That’s what you sign up for when you come to Penn State.

So those expectations are always really high. We’ve been to a bunch of New Year’s Six games before that, and again, a lot of programs would die to go to a New Year’s Six Bowl; make a New Year’s Six game or win a Six game. And we’ve done that fairly consistently. And I wouldn’t say it necessarily feels that way. So I would not say it feels any different within our building, with our coaches, and with our players.

But I will say this, you know, all the hard work that they have done, the number of guys that decided to come back, they’ve earned it. They’ve earned those types of conversations and that attention. But I would also say to you, which I think you heard me say before again, no one. No one cares about preseason rankings. Like, I’m not going to frame the preseason rankings and put it in my basement, in the man cave. No, no one cares. No, no one cares. So all that’s wonderful. We want to spend our time working on the things that are going to allow us to do things that we want to do this year, starting with Nevada, and creating the habits and behaviors that will get us there, not talking about not spending a ton of time talking about their goals and those types of things. There’s a place for it, but we’re focused on what we have to do to have the type of season that we want to have.

Watch James Franklin’s full press conference at Penn State football media day

Although Penn State football is only two practices into the 2025 season, there’s still plenty to catch up on since the Nittany Lions took the field in April. You can find James Franklin’s full media day press conference and early practice updates below and on the Basic Blues Nation YouTube Channel.

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