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Penn State football: How secure is James Franklin’s job heading into 2019?

By Justin Grasso

STATE COLLEGE, PA - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions reacts against the Maryland Terrapins during the second half at Beaver Stadium on November 24, 2018 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions reacts against the Maryland Terrapins during the second half at Beaver Stadium on November 24, 2018 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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CBS Sports recently put together a ‘Hot Seat’ rankings list for each NCAA team’s head coach. Penn State football’s James Franklin seems to be in good shape.

Every year, the NCAA coaching carousel has an interesting twist. It’s not like a big-named coach gets canned every season, but there’s always some speculation around the NCAA as if a surprise can happen at any moment during any season. It’s been a while since Penn State football had to deal with any major coaching change at the end of a season.

It’s especially been a while since the program had to fire somebody on their own. Their previous coach, Bill O’Brien who was hired back in 2012 exited Happy Valley on his own terms by accepting a head coaching job with the Houston Texans. That’s when Penn State’s current leader in charge, James Franklin joined the team ahead of the 2014 season.

Over time, Franklin has proven to be one solid coach for the program. So far, Franklin has a winning record as the Nittany Lions head coach at 45-21. Like many major college coaches though, Franklin has his fair share of doubters.

It wouldn’t be college football if certain packs of fans didn’t overreact from time to time, calling for the coaches job. That’s just how the football fandom world works. While we don’t think Franklin’s time in Happy Valley is by any means numbered, is there any chance he could be heading into the 2019 season on the hot seat from the program?

A look at the ‘hot seat’ rankings

CBS Sports recently put together a power ranking, which is a little bit different from your typical lists. Instead of ranking head coaches from best to worst, CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd put together a 1-5 ranking system based off of particular grades, which pertain to where the current coach stands. A five rating means “win or get fired.” A zero rating means “untouchable.”

For Penn State, James Franklin seems to be in good shape, as expected. With five years of coaching under his belt at Penn State, Franklin heads into the 2019 season with a rating of one. By no means is Franklin considered to be untouchable — but rather he’s “safe and secure.”

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In other words, Franklin isn’t going anywhere — not this year at least. It would have to take an awful season in 2019 for Penn State to even consider putting Franklin on the hot seat. Since Penn State is heading into a new era on offense, they will have all eyes on them to see just how Franklin and company moves on without Trace McSorley at the helm. Franklin will have wiggle room for mistakes if they happen, but if the team is successful in 2019, he will get a ton of praise as well.

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