James Franklin opens up on job interest from other schools

James Franklin has been a hot name for job openings over recent seasons, but has opted to stay at Penn State through it all.

Still, that doesn’t mean the Nittany Lions leader isn’t benefitting from the interest. Joining Adam Breneman’s show Next Up, Franklin explained how he’s leveraged the interest he’s receiving into improving Penn State.

“So I think that’s an important point. It does a couple things. It creates leverage, with where you’re at. But it also allows you to see clearly what the commitment level is,” Franklin elaborated. “For me, it’s really never been the finances. Don’t get me wrong, I know that’s a part, and you threw that out there in the beginning and I get that. But for me, if you really study all my contracts, all my contracts were about how do we put the program in the best position to be successful.

“And it’s funny you bring that up, because at Vanderbilt, I remember having that conversation with the AD. I was there three years, and had three different contracts all three years, and the AD said that to me, ‘Your contract allows me to get some things done in the athletic department that I need to get done, and your contract allows me to have conversations with the President, with the Chancellor, with the board, whatever it may be.’ So yeah, there is a part of that for sure, but I think it kind of gives clarity to everybody.”

Continuing, Franklin elaborated on how coaches have no control over their name popping up in rumors, and while sometimes it can be slightly annoying, it can be useful nonetheless.

“It’s funny, a lot of times coaches get put in a tough position, because you’re asked about it. Well I can’t control the fact that this name, my name has been brought up, or somebody’s had this conversation,” added the Penn State leader. “But yeah, it can be useful. It can be useful for the university. It can be useful for the athletic department. It can be useful for the coach, to see where he stands, and is their true commitment.”

Instead of taking his talents elsewhere, James Franklin has taken Penn State to a new level, in part using the interest from other schools to do so. You can believe that many other coaches will follow suit moving forward.