Penn State fans stunned by James Franklin's competence in a huge moment

Penn State fans have grown tired of losing to the best teams on the schedule every year since James Franklin took over a decade ago. However, even the most frustrated Nittany Lions supporters were ready to heap praise on the team’s head coach after escaping Minneapolis with a 26-25 win over Minnesota on Saturday night. 

Franklin didn’t just go for it on fourth down on the final drive of the game once, he did it three times. Those gutsy decisions sealed a victory that has Penn State just one win away from an at-large bid into the 12-team College Football Playoff. 

Franklin’s fake punt and then fourth-down pass from quarterback Drew Allar to tight end Tyler Warren were shocking to a fanbase that has become accustomed to their head coach shrinking in the biggest moments. Still, they were happy to see what looked and felt like an evolution from Franklin in his 11th year. 

Penn State doesn’t always beat the best teams in the schedule, in fact, it rarely does. However, Franklin has led the Nittany Lions to 30 straight wins over unranked opponents and for the first time since taking over in Happy Valley, has an unbeaten season on the road. 

The praise for Franklin even came in from the national media, which has often spread the narrative that he “can’t win the big one.” 

It was a big change from earlier in the game when Penn State fans and everybody else were ready to run Franklin out of town for a loss that could have cost a spot in the CFP. 

Franklin has plenty of security from a long-term contract extension, but it’s not hard to imagine a desperate program and fanbase moving on after failing to make the expanded version of the playoff. Now, that’s not a worry because all Franklin needs to do, is what he’s done best at Penn State, beat up on Maryland.