With Penn State moving on from James Franklin, our staff got together to remember the good ol’ times of the Franklin era.
Tim
The win over Ohio State in 2016 felt like a true breakthrough moment not just for James Franklin or the football program, but for the entire Penn State community which had been through absolute hell as a result of “It” and the aftermath that followed. It really felt like we had finally turned the page and could truly begin to consider Penn State a nationally relevant program once
again after spending nearly half a decade in the proverbial wilderness. Almost everyone only talks about the “block six” moment, but what people tend to overlook is PSU twice found themselves trailing by double-digit deficits in that game at 12-0 and 21-7 and yet, managed to claw their way back. Furthermore, OSU still had over four minutes left when they got the ball back right after the block-six, needing only a field goal to force overtime or win it with a touchdown. The defense, which had looked like a depleted, broken shell of itself against Michigan just a month earlier reached deep down and came up with one final stand to seal the win and subsequent storming of the field. I still have video of that magical field storming in my phone to this day. Lando
Game-wise, I think I’ll have to go with Minnesota in 2016. At a time where Penn State desperately needed a win to avoid a season as disappointing as this one is turning out to be, fans got to see a phenom running back and an exciting young quarterback take the stage in Happy Valley for the first time of many in their careers.
Honorable mention goes to all of the Petty CJF moments, such as calling timeouts to try and preserve a shutout against Georgia State.
Bennett
I’ll go back to January 2, 2023. I was in Pasadena, California with my son and one of my best friends. Nicholas Singleton and Keandre Lambert-Smith had long touchdowns as Penn State broke open what was once a close game against highly ranked Utah in the Rose Bowl. The mist fell as I left the stadium and Franklin and his team were clearly so happy. They’d won a big game on a national stage. They had hung together after tough losses. They seemed ready to make that final leap to elite with a five-star quarterback ready to go in 2022. It was the hopeful, joyful optimism that Franklin brought to Penn State played out on the field. There had been rocky times, but Franklin always seemed to pull it together and come out on top. I never would have imagined that less than three years later, it would all end this way.
Chris
Seeing Saquon Barkley run the opening kickoff back for a touchdown against Ohio State in 2017 is perhaps my single fondest memory from the James Franklin era. The team seemed like it was a well-oiled death machine, and was marching toward a playoff berth and potential national championship on the back of a generational running back, a gritty quarterback, and sound defense. Fast forward in that very same game to early in the second quarter, and the Lions held a 21-3 lead, and I thought that the tide had finally turned. Fast forward to the end of the game, then the following week against Michigan State, and while I’ve thought the Lions have had some good teams since, I’ve never once felt like they SHOULD have won since the early portions of that 2017 game against OSU.
Colin
The 2016 Big Ten Championship was the moment it finally felt like Penn State football was back on the map. The win over Ohio State was dismissed as a fluke for several weeks. PSU was viewed as the third-best team in the divison who got lucky because Michigan choked against Iowa and OSU. Then the team came back from 28-7 down to beat Wisconsin in the conference championship, and it became clear to the rest of the country that Penn State was back. They never recaptured that magic again, but for a moment in time, James Franklin’s Penn State was the top dog in the Big Ten.
Eli
Mine isn’t an event, but rather a feeling. After being told that Penn State would be uncompetitive for years, if not decades to come, seeing someone take the program from the brink of extinction and make them competitive almost immediately is the thing I’ll keep from the Franklin era.
Jared
I’ll go back to Oct. 17, 2021 when Penn State walloped Michigan, 42-13. The game was basically over from the start as Saquon Barkley ripped through and sprinted past the Wolverines defense on his first carry. Everything was going the Nittany Lions way as a White Out crowd celebrated big play after big play on both sides of the ball. Penn State was ranked #2 at the time, coming off a Big Ten Championship, and seemed poised to become repeat champs. The national title was certainly in play, especially in a season where there didn’t seem to be a true heavyweight. It just felt like there were so many championship seasons ahead at that moment.
Patrick
I mean, how can it not be winning the Big Ten title in 2016? Really, that whole run after beating Ohio State was just so exciting. The way the team would turn it on in the second half and just boat race teams was something magical. After a tough few seasons with the scandal and the sanctions, it was exhilarating to have an explosive offense to root for that — and one that wasn’t afraid to run up the score.
