STATE COLLEGE – James Franklin looked and sounded as defeated as he’s ever been Saturday night.
Penn State, the team that Franklin coaches, dropped its third straight Big Ten game, falling to three-touchdown underdog Northwestern 22-21 on Homecoming weekend at Beaver Stadium.
“We shouldn’t lose that game,” he said quietly. “That’s 100% on me and we gotta get it fixed. I will get it fixed.”
Franklin might not get that chance. The Nittany Lions, who started the season ranked second nationally, dropped their second straight game as a prohibitive favorite after a 42-37 loss to UCLA in California.
The crowd of 108,121 booed loudly after the Wildcats (2-1, 4-2) had sealed their first victory over the Nittany Lions (0-3, 3-3) since 2015, his second season. Many in the stands chanted, “Fire Franklin!”
“The fans are frustrated and I totally get it,” he said. “We have great fans here. We get unbelievable support. I understand their frustration. Trust me. We’re as frustrated as anybody.”
Franklin has six years remaining on his contact, which has a buyout of a whopping $48 million.
He was asked if he still wanted to be the Penn State football coach.
“Ultimately it’s about the guys in the locker room,” he said, “and they’re hurting in there. I’d do anything I could to take that hurt away from them. Like I told them, we have to stick together. We have to tune out all the noise. We have to get to work.
“That’s the only answer – to get to work. We’ve had some adversity in the past, (but) not like this.”
The last two times that the Lions started 0-3 in Big Ten play was in 2020 during the pandemic and in 2004, when they finished 4-7 overall.
To make matters worse, quarterback Drew Allar suffered a season-ending injury late in the fourth quarter. He immediately grabbed his left ankle after he was tackled. He was later carted off the field before Franklin confirmed that his college career was over.
This was a team that had high hopes after reaching the Big Ten title game last year, advancing to the College Football Playoff semifinals and returning many of its top players who could have turned pro.
The loss ended the Lions’ remote chances of reaching the CFP again.
“We just have to take responsibility and accountability,” defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton said. “I don’t know how we ended up in this position, man.”
Penn State scored a go-ahead touchdown when Allar capped a 91-yard drive with a 1-yard quarterback sneak that made it 21-16 with 10:50 to go. That left it up to the defense and assistant coach Jim Knowles, the highest-paid defensive coordinator in the country.
Northwestern, though, drove 75 yards behind 33 rushing yards and Preston Stone’s 4-of-5 passing. Caleb Komolafe burst through the Penn State defense for a 9-yard touchdown and a one-point lead with 4:51 left.
“Twenty-two points is a lot,” Dennis-Sutton said. “We were up at halftime. We have to win the game, brother. I don’t know. We obviously have to stop the runs, or whatever they were doing. We can’t let them get past us. That’s on the whole defense.”
Penn State got the ball back and couldn’t gain a first down. Backup quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer replaced Allar and was stopped short of the chains on fourth-and-3 with 3:07 left. Northwestern ran out the clock.
The Wildcats had a 282-274 advantage in total yards over Penn State, which committed six penalties for 71 yards in the first half, including four that contributed to all three Northwestern scores.
Allar threw an end-zone interception after Dennis-Sutton blocked a punt for the second straight game, and Devonte Ross fumbled a punt inside the Penn State 10, which set up a Northwestern field goal.
Allar completed 13-for-20 passes for 137 yards, including a 67-yard throw to Ross before his TD. Kaytron Allen carried 16 times for 90 yards and one touchdown, and Nick Singleton scored on a 2-yard run in limited action.
Now Penn State has to pick up the pieces of a lost season that started with great expectations.
“My brothers, my teammates and my coaches,” defensive tackle Zane Durant said when asked what he has to play for. “Everything that we did in the offseason, how we prepared and the relationship I built with God, that’s what I’m playing for.
“Pride has been involved since Day 1. We wear this Penn State logo with a lot of pride.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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