Things are certainly interesting in Happy Valley right now! For, obviously, all the wrong reasons.
For those unitiaited:
Penn State began the preseason ranked #2, its highest preseason ranking since 1997
They returned 14 starters from the team that made the CFP semifinal last season
Since a rather uninspiring 3-0 non-conference start, Penn State has dropped a double OT game to Oregon, lost wire-to-wire against previously winless UCLA, and then coughed up a late lead on Saturday to lose their third game in a row (0-3 in B1G)
Before this week’s game, Penn State had already dropped out of the AP Top 25
Head coach James Franklin, in his 12th season at Penn State, was already on the hot seat for his inability to win marquee games, plus the UCLA debacle
So, of course, all of this set up a wild, memorable, but devastating Saturday homecoming loss for the Nittany Lions, who are reeling for the first time since 2021. In addition to the losses, the Drew Allar era is officially over at Penn State. Penn State keeps injury secrets like the mob does hits, but it sure looked like a blown Achilles for the senior quarterback.
The Allar injury puts a cap on a frustrating tenure. Allar arrived as the #1 rated QB in the 2022 class. A 5-star recruit out of Ohio, Allar was supposed to lift the Nittany Lions’ ceiling on offense while also raising its floor. There are arguments to be made that the floor was raised, but the ceiling never got as high as people anticipated.
Unless a miracle medical redshirt comes into play, Allar will be remembered in a better light than once highly touted Christian Hackenberg, but ultimately, they will both leave a lot of “what ifs” on the table for a program that had desperately tried to break through to the elite level of competition.
The proof of Penn State going all in was clear as day: the signing of defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, the signing of running backs coach Stan Drayton, and the aforementioned return of 14 starters, many of whom could be playing right now in the NFL. All of these moves required significant monetary resources to put together.
Alas, the Curse of 1994 remains strong and mighty. Test it as you may, but there are still many ghosts to slay before Penn State football can take the next step in its quest for championship glory.
As of this writing, Franklin still has his job, and no changes to staff have been announced. I would expect something to be coming; not perhaps a firing, but some kind of shakeup.
Yes, the playoff is completely off the table right now, but there is still quite a bit to play for this season and beyond. That starts with three pretty high-profile games in a row (at Iowa, at OSU, vs. Indiana), not to mention a November game against a Nebraska squad that is 5-1 on the season.
I don’t have much else to add about Franklin that I haven’t already talked about. I think it’s getting clearer that change needs to happen, but there is a big ol contract buyout that would need to be cleared by the Penn State board. Throw that on top of an additional salary to hire a new coach… I’m just not sure Penn State is that evolved yet.
Surprise me. Make a bold move. I think, similar to my thoughts on the Yankees, Penn State is at a dangerous complacency spot right now. That’s hard to say, given the height of expectations all offseason and only about a month ago, but it’s true. Fear may be holding the program back from the change that’s needed.
A program with this much money should not be afraid to try and blow it up while still staying competitive. NIL, the transfer portal… there are a lot of modern ways that Penn State can reload pretty quickly, even if there is an exodus with Franklin being shown the door.
Whatever happens, one thing Franklin and I can agree on is how much we feel for the players who are going through it right now. Yes, a lot of them are now paid large gobs of cash. But they are still kids. They don’t have fully developed brains, yet the weight of an entire university lies on their shoulders. I’m not making excuses. I just want people to remember the context of what college football still is, even with the amount of bread flying around.
Everyone is hurting right now. But all wounds heal with proper care. What that looks like for Franklin and Penn State is anyone’s guess. It’ll be fascinating to see how it plays out.
Aw man, if I lived closer to you, I'd feel obligated to knock on your door and leave you a casserole. Rough.