Penn State’s James Franklin says college football is ‘not heading in a good direction’

Penn State’s spring practice won’t start for another month, but Tuesday’s news conference with coach James Franklin covered an array of topics, from the state of college football to transfer portal additions. He addressed reporters for the first time since late December as Penn State begins to shift its focus to preparing for a new season — one featuring three new coordinators alongside Franklin.

While most of the press conference was spent looking ahead to spring practice, Franklin took some time to address the current state of college football, lamenting the current model and the state of the transfer portal culture, which he says is “not headed in a good direction, really for anybody.”

“My biggest concern is you’re having people leave college football that would have never left college football because a lot of the head coaching positions, coordinator positions, and assistant coaches positions, it’s gotten further and further away from what they signed up for,” Franklin said. “Everybody knew you had to recruit to coach them. There was a balance between those two, but all these other things are taking you further away from coaching and developing kids.

“The reality is the college football that we’ve all known, the college athletics that we’ve all known, that’s not coming back, and you’re going to have to embrace the current model that we’re in. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t make it better.”

Coaching changes dominated the conversation, as the staff adjusts and prepares to install plans offensively and defensively leading up to April’s spring game. Of the hires this offseason, Tom Allen, the former Indiana head coach, has the biggest shoes to fill as Penn State’s new defensive coordinator, replacing Manny Diaz’s defensive system that ranked as one of college football’s top units.

College athletics that we’ve all known, that’s not coming back, and you’re going to have to embrace the current model that we’re in. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t make it better.”

According to Franklin, the interview process in hiring Allen lasted over a week, as the Penn State staff was also finalizing the early-signing day period recruiting class and refining expectations for the role.

“We wanted to find someone that philosophically aligned with what we’ve done, understood our personnel, understood the conference, understand where we’ve been and where we need to go, and then also spend enough time talking through those things,” Franklin said. “It allowed me to feel comfortable that I was signing up for who I was signing up for, and I think it also allowed [Allen] to feel comfortable with those things as well.”

Franklin added that other teams reached out to Allen about other coaching openings, even after he accepted the Penn State defensive coordinator position.

In regards to the transfer portal, Franklin has been outspoken about targeting players Penn State had previously recruited coming out of high school. Six players were added to the Nittany Lions roster through the portal, with wideout Julian Fleming headlining the group.

Fleming, a Catawissa, Pa., native, nearly committed to Penn State four seasons ago as the nation’s top receiving prospect but opted to play at Ohio State. In four seasons with the Buckeyes, Fleming compiled 79 receptions for 963 yards and seven touchdowns in 38 games.

Franklin says the previous relationship he had with Fleming and his family was key in bringing the wideout to Happy Valley.

“His ability to play in this league, I think is helpful,” Franklin said of Fleming. “He understands what this league is all about, he also has an understanding about the [college football] playoffs as well, I think those things are valued. And he’s an older guy, which I also think helps in that [receiver] room.”

Another portal addition, Nolan Rucci, has an opportunity to make an instant impact on the Nittany Lions offensive line, which is losing both offensive tackles to the NFL. Like Fleming, Rucci is a Pennsylvania native and was ranked the No. 1 player in Pennsylvania by 247Sports in 2021 after becoming a standout at Warwick High School, ultimately opting to play at Wisconsin.

He played in just three games as a backup for the Badgers in 2023, including catching a game-winning touchdown against Illinois earlier in the season. Franklin said Rucci’s performance in Wisconsin’s ReliaQuest Bowl game matchup with LSU gave both Rucci — who has already added six pounds to his frame this offseason — and the Penn State staff confidence in adding him to the roster.

Said Franklin: “He’s still skinny because he’s all of 6-foot-8. [That height] isn’t always a positive thing for an offensive lineman, if you can’t bend, but he can really bend. He’s got tremendous athleticism. … He’s been great, there’s a lot of excitement with the coaching staff and the strength [and conditioning] staff.”

The Nittany Lions coach also gave a glowing review of A.J. Harris, a Georgia transfer who was another former five-star recruit coming out of high school. By their second phone call, Franklin says Harris did his homework on the Lions’ roster, defensive schemes and more, impressing the Penn State staff and later leading to his addition.

» READ MORE: Senior Bowl 2024: Q&A with Penn State’s Theo Johnson, one of 2024 NFL draft’s top tight ends

The NFL announced its full list of draft hopefuls set to take part in the scouting combine, with 321 players invited. Of that list, 10 former Penn State players will be participating, including offensive tackle Olu Fashanu, a projected top-10 pick, and defensive end Chop Robinson, also expected to go in the first round.

Four of the 10 players participated in the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., earlier this month: Theo Johnson, Kalen King, Johnny Dixon, and Adisa Isaac, who put together an excellent week. Meanwhile, Caedan Wallace, Curtis Jacobs, Hunter Nourzad, and Daequan Hardy all competed at the Shrine Bowl in Frisco, Texas.

Here’s the full list of players heading to the combine later this month: