Nick Saban sends clear message to Penn State about James Franklin firing originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Nick Saban had a lot to say about James Franklin’s firing by Penn State. The former Alabama Crimson Tide coach blasted the move and said it was “unfair.”
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Franklin made his first public comments Saturday while on the set of ESPN College GameDay. This came less than a week after Penn State axed him. The Nittany Lions started the season 3-4, including a loss against Iowa in Terry Smith’s debut as interim coach.
Franklin spent much of the interview talking about his plans going forward, saying he’ll win a national championship somewhere else. Rece Davis asked Franklin whether he felt Penn State treated him fairly to which he replied that it was “for other people to decide.” However, Saban answered Davis’ question more directly.
“You know, you made the statement, it’s not like up to you to decide what’s fair or unfair. When Reese answered that question, I’m going to answer it. It’s unfair as hell for you to go to the Rose bowl, the Fiesta bowl, get in the Final Four, come out being ranked number one this year,” Saban said.
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“An expectation that you created by what you accomplished at Penn State. And for those people not to show enough appreciation for that and gratitude for all the hard work that you did, I’m saying it’s unfair.”
Franklin’s response wasn’t textbook to say the least and he took his own slight jab at Penn State.
“I think, Coach, you understand this better than anybody, Right? You’ve used the phrase rat poison. The negative rat poison that you got to get everybody to tune out,” Franklin said. “And the positive is rat poison. But that creates a ton of pressure and pressure that we’ve earned. We created that pressure. And I think that’s the thing that I’m most proud of.
“The point that you said, when I took over the program 12 years ago, it was in a very different situation than it is now. And that’s something I take great pride in, right. The program was in a very, very difficult position. One of the most historical sanctions in NCAA history, and we got him back to be a consistent contender. So you understand how hard that is and the work that went into it, but the expectations we created them. So I take pride in that. Obviously we got to do a better job of tuning all that noise out and focus on being 1-0, and the task at hand. But that’s challenging. As you know, coach, we’ve talked about that a bunch.”
More:James Franklin’s ESPN College GameDay interview
For now, Franklin will sit back and entertain offers. The good thing is he’s not alone during this cycle, which started early. Penn State is just one of 11 FBS schools currently with head coach openings, including Arkansas and Florida in the SEC.
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