Column: For James Franklin, Penn State football, actions speak volumes

The juxtaposition was pronounced.

Surrounded by reporters Wednesday evening just off the corner of Penn State's practice fields, head coach James Franklin took a question about how he's handling the latest offseason of intrigue regarding his professional future with the Nittany Lions.

Directly to his right, just beyond a chain link fencing wrapped in blue tarps, the unformed future of Penn State football appears ready to be molded.

At the back entrance of Penn State football’s facilities, the beginning stages of work are taking place as part of a $48.3 million renovation and expansion of the Lasch Football Building. A project that will expand the current weight room, plans are also in place to upgrade performance enhancement equipment, build a student-athlete development suite, and also includes sports medicine improvements.

It is, in many ways, Franklin's most important contribution to the Penn State football program in his eight-year tenure.

It is also likely what stings the most when his motivations are questioned now that another round of high-profile college football powers are pursuing his services and he hasn't publicly precluded himself from their considerations. Rather, another of the many battles he's fought on behalf of the betterment of Penn State football, no more important sign of his dedication to the program can exist.

"I think I have shown my loyalty to this team, to this program, to this community. I think I've been pretty consistent with that," Franklin said Wednesday night. "There are times that you're put in challenging situations, and I just always want to be able, when I say something, it's done, and it's in stone. And when you're talking about the future, that can be challenging at times. I am fiercely loyal to Penn State. I am fiercely loyal, most importantly, to these players and the staff."

That loyalty and commitment is evident by the construction site's very existence.

The reason it’s currently taking place?

Look no further than Franklin’s last round of contract negotiations in the aftermath of Penn State’s 10-2 regular season in 2019. A six-year extension to his contract that runs through the 2025 season, Franklin received a modest pay bump on the deal he signed in 2017 that averaged $5.8 million per year over six years, with improved incentives.

Considerably more important than those changes, however, Franklin received a commitment from Penn State to support and continue his mission to lift the Nittany Lions as a program. Franklin also insisted upon establishing a culture in which Penn State’s administration invested deeply toward building a more nationally competitive program, equipped as necessary to keep pace with the game's best, and the administration publicly obliged that vision.

"We wanted to make a strong pledge to James and this program with this new contract," Penn State director of athletics Sandy Barbour said in a December 2019 press release accompanying the announcement of his extension. "James came to Penn State with a very clear vision and we have seen that grow and prosper. What he has done to bring success to our program, both on and off the field, has been nothing short of spectacular."

Another in a series of desperately needed upgrades to Penn State football’s home, Franklin’s last round of contract negotiations and the pledge that came with it were the catalyst for this latest project coming to fruition.

But, it wasn’t the finish line for Franklin or Penn State football.

With the latest round of college football’s coaching carousel now again invoking Franklin’s name, Southern Cal and Louisiana State both reportedly interested, and the public speculation swirling as a result, Penn State fans are asking the wrong questions.

What would make either of those jobs more appealing than Penn State?

In a September poll surveying 100 high-level individuals in the game, The Athletic cited LSU as No. 5 and USC as No. 6 among the most desirable head coaching jobs in college football. Why? “Their school is completely committed to competing at the highest level, and their program has excellent support, facilities, and a game-day atmosphere that’s hard to beat,” the story said of LSU.

What is Penn State as an institution doing about it?

Is Penn State, institutionally, taking a deep-dive examination of itself and honestly evaluating where it stands against its national peers? Is Penn State creating a road map for itself to build that level of success? Is Penn State willing to commit to that road map once it is established?

And, maybe most importantly, is Penn State matching the investment and commitment to football as its powerhouse national peers?

While nothing dictates that Penn State follow the exact same map, if the destination isn’t the same, that being Big Ten division titles, conference championships, College Football Playoff appearances, and national titles, what’s the point?

The resolutions to these questions aren’t necessarily simple, but they're also choices.

If Penn State isn’t interested or capable of answering affirmatively, clear-eyed and purposeful in its pursuit of excellence at the highest level, so be it. Just make sure the community of support surrounding the program understands the challenges and what has prompted the decisions that have been made.

And if Penn State is all-in on that pursuit, make that equally clear both through words and by taking the steps necessary to compete with a sense of urgency.

Franklin, his staff, and the players under his charge will continue to play a critical role in shaping the future of the program with on-field results.

Success breeds success, after all.

Without maintaining a consistently high standard of excellence, something that has very much been called into question as a result of the Nittany Lions’ 2020 campaign at 4-5 and the sudden turn in fortunes for the 2021 season, inspiring a reciprocated commitment becomes that much more challenging.

But when considering where Franklin stands in his commitment to Penn State, and the investment he’s made both personally and professionally into the program, talk is considerably cheaper than action. And for Franklin, those actions are overwhelmingly evident in every facet of where Penn State's football presently stands and, more important, where he obviously wants it to go.

"For me, that's what it's all about. It's about my relationships with these players, and the staff, and the people in that Lasch building, and the people in the community," Franklin said. "And I think if people really would just take a minute and kind of think about how we've conducted ourselves over eight years in the community and everything else, I think our actions have aligned with that every step of the way."

For the Nittany Lions’ future, one that isn't assured by tradition or reputation without a commitment to continued excellence to back it up, that action and commitment from Franklin can be seen from a broader perspective.

Not found through words at a press conference or a viral video clip, it's actually just beyond a chain-link fence, in a torn-up parking lot, behind the Lasch Building.

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