Ohio State Buckeyes HC Ryan Day gets real about James Franklin being fired at Penn State
No coach ever wants to see another coach fired.
A big shakeup took place a couple of days ago when the Penn State Nittany Lions decided to move on from head football coach James Franklin. Before the season, it was thought that Penn State’s matchup with the Ohio State Buckeyes at the beginning of November would be one of the biggest games of the year. Now, the Nittany Lions are a 3-3 football team, Franklin has been fired, and quarterback Drew Allar is out for the season.
Penn State started the season ranked No. 2 in the AP Poll — one spot ahead of the Buckeyes. The Nittany Lions are now unranked, and that November game doesn’t carry the same weight it once did. Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was asked about Franklin’s firing for the first time on Tuesday.
Ryan Day chimes in on the firing of James Franklin at Penn State
“James, anytime you are somewhere for as long as he has, he did a lot of great things,” Day said. “We had a lot of great games against each other. He’s gonna land on his feet. He’s a really good coach.”
“That’s the world we live in. It’s something that, I think, for all of us, we need to make sure we focus on what matters to us and what’s at hand. I said it before — whether it’s the negative things or the positive things or things like that — those are all kind of noise out there. There’s a lot that comes at you, whether you’re a player or a coach. Our ability to focus and concentrate on what’s important is what’s critical, so that’s what we’ve got to do.”
Being a head coach at a major college football program comes with pressure to win and compete, but these coaches are heavily compensated to lead. Franklin will be paid nearly $50 million from his buyout after being fired, so it’s not exactly all bad on his part. Day has never lost to Penn State and holds a perfect 6-0 record against Franklin and the Nittany Lions.
Back in the offseason, former Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles made a lateral move to Penn State with the same title. That storyline — Knowles returning to Columbus — will be the biggest one to watch on Nov. 1. Penn State plays Iowa this coming weekend, then will have a bye week before making their trip to Columbus. What was supposed to be a potential top-three showdown now looks like just another game for the Buckeyes.
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Just a month ago, the thought was that when the Penn State Nittany Lions rolled into Columbus in November, it would be a key game for the Ohio State Buckeyes. While it’s still an important matchup, it’s no longer the top-three showdown it looked like it could be at the beginning of the season. Penn […]
