In a stunning decision in College Football on Sunday, Penn State has fired head coach James Franklin of Langhorne, Pennsylvania. The decision made by the Nittany Lions Athletic Department came after Penn State lost their last three games. At the beginning of the College Football Season, Penn State was ranked second. Now after three straight losses, they are not even nationally ranked.
Who beat the Nittany Lions in the streak?
Penn State was beaten 30-24 in overtime by Oregon on September 27. That was followed by a 42-37 loss to UCLA on October 4, and a 22-21 loss to Northwestern on October 11. The losses to UCLA and Northwestern were stunning. That is because in both games, the Nittany Lions were 20 point favourites. According to Cameron Salerno of CBS Sports, Penn State is the first College Football team ever to be a 20 point favourite in back-to-back weeks and lose. Penn State was a 24.5 point favourite against UCLA and a 20.5 point favourite against Northwestern.
Strong Start
The Nittany Lions did win their first three games of the year as they beat Nevada 46-11, Florida International University 34-0 and Villanova 52-6. However, Penn State entered the season with National Championship aspirations, and now those dreams are basically over.
Franklin’s record at Penn State
Franklin had a record of 104 wins and 45 losses at Penn State. He had been with the Nittany Lions since 2014. In that time, Franklin coached Penn State to nine significant games (either an elite Bowl game or a College Football Playoff game). Penn State lost 52-49 to USC at the 2017 Rose Bowl, beat Washington 35-28 at the 2017 Fiesta Bowl, lost 27-24 to Kentucky in the 2019 Citrus Bowl, beat Memphis 53-39 at the 2019 Cotton Bowl, beat Utah 35-21 at the 2023 Rose Bowl, lost to Ole Miss 38-25 at the 2023 Peach Bowl, beat Southern Methodist University 38-10 in the first round of the 2024 College Football Playoff, beat Boise State 31-14 at the 2024 Fiesta Bowl, and then lost 27-24 to Notre Dame in the 2025 Orange Bowl (College Football Playoff semifinal).
Who is the Interim Head Coach at Penn State?
Penn State’s interim head coach is Terry Smith of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania. Smith was a wide receiver at Penn State from 1987 to 1991. Since 2014, Smith has been on the Nittany Lions coaching staff. He was the defensive recruiting coordinator, cornerbacks coach, assistant head coach and associate head coach for Penn State. Also as a player, Smith played two seasons with the Shreveport Pirates of the Canadian Football League from 1994 to 1995. He had 28 catches for 427 receiving yards.
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