James Franklin fired as Penn State head coach after disappointing start to season

By Thomas Schlachter, CNN

(CNN) — Long time Penn State head coach James Franklin has been fired after the Nittany Lions’ poor start to the season, the school announced Sunday.

Franklin has been the head coach of Penn State’s football team for over 11 years after joining the program in 2014.

The 53-year-old ends his time at the university with a 104-45 record.

Penn State’s associate head coach Terry Smith will be in charge on an interim basis until the end of the season, the team added.

“Penn State owes an enormous amount of gratitude to Coach Franklin who rebuilt our football program into a national power,” Penn State’s vice president of intercollegiate athletics Patrick Kraft said in a statement on Sunday.

“He won a Big Ten Championship, led us to seven New Year’s Six bowl games and a College Football Playoff appearance last year. However, we hold our athletics programs to the highest of standards, and we believe this is the right moment for new leadership at the helm of our football program to advance us toward Big Ten and national championships.”

After reaching last season’s College Football Playoffs semifinals, the Nittany Lions have started the season with a disappointing 3-3 record after losing their last three games.

Penn State’s losing streak started with a loss against the now No. 8 ranked Oregon before a shock 42-37 upset against the then-winless UCLA.

As pressure started to build on the head coach, the Nittany Lions’ third loss in a row came on Saturday against the Northwestern Wildcats in a closely-contested 22-21 defeat.

Penn State also lost their starting quarterback Drew Allar for the season after he appeared to suffer a left leg injury during Saturday’s loss.

The president of Penn State, Neeli Bendapudi thanked Franklin for his achievements at the university.

“I am grateful for all that Coach Franklin has done for Penn State football and the University over the past 11-plus years. We thank him for his dedication, and we extend our best wishes to him and his family as they move forward into their next chapter,” Bendapudi said in Sunday’s statement.

“Our commitment to excellence extends across every facet of our institution, including athletics, and I am looking forward with great anticipation to this exciting new chapter for the Nittany Lions as we continue to build on that standard.”

Penn State’s next game is against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday.

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