James Franklin considered a top 10 best head coach of past two decades

ESPN's Brian Connelly curated a list of the best head coaches in Division I football over the past 20 years, and Penn State's James Franklin made the list among the elites.

Using 60 percent performance v. historical baseline and a 40 percent SP+ average, the Nittany Lion head coach not only made it onto the list, but made it into the No. 8 spot.

ESPN's Brian Connelly puts Penn State head coach James Franklin at No. 8 of best head coaches of the last 20 years

Connelly's 20-coach list only considers those who have coached a minimum of nine years. Franklin's average performance v. baseline was 7.3 and his average SP+ rating was 18.1. He has an 11.6 coach rating as well on the list. Above Franklin are Nick Saban (No. 1), Chris Peterson (No. 2), Kirby Smart (No. 3), Gary Pinkel (No. 4), Urban Meyer (No. 5), Jim Harbaugh (No. 6), and Bob Stoops (No. 7).

Franklin has developed a consistent program at Penn State, despite his biggest challenge being stepping up in those big moments. Especially after the 2024 season, he's facing loads of pressure to overcome the "Big Game James" narrative. That didn't stop Connelly from taking things a step further, though.

ESPN's Brian Connelly puts Penn State head coach James Franklin at No. 4 of best active head coaches in the NCAA

Connelly also created a list of the top 30 active head coaches in the NCAA (with a minimum of four years). Franklin, who's under fire ahead of 2025, broke into the top five at No. 4 with Ryan Day (No. 1), Josh Heupel (No. 2), and Kirby Smart (No. 3) above him.

Even though Connelly has Franklin up there with the greats, he still has to prove himself. Despite maintaining consistency in his program, it's time for Franklin to overcome the struggles against top ranked teams.

In fact, Franklin's considered one of the top college football coaches facing the most pressure in 2025, according to On3's ranking. The No. 8 head coach of the past two decades is also the eighth highest coach on blast going into the season.

The pressure is rightfully placed. Franklin's job isn't completely on the line, obviously, but if he can't get over the hump he's creating a case against keeping him in the future. He brought the Nittany Lions to their first College Football Playoffs and almost won the Big Ten Championship Game, but Franklin needs to bring titles back to Happy Valley to make a lasting argument that he deserves to sit up there with the elites.