Penn State coach James Franklin knows the program hasn’t been good enough in big games, and he addressed that after the team’s lost 30-24 to No. 6 Oregon in 2 OT Saturday night.
“I get that narrative,” he said, “and it’s really not narrative, it’s factual. It’s the facts.”
The facts are that Oregon coach Dan Lanning— who has been a head coach for almost a fourth of the time that Franklin has— has won more top five matchups against Franklin than Franklin has against anybody.
THE BIG PICTURE
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Although Franklin did take accountability for the big game losses, he point out that, overall, the program has been very good under his watch.
Penn State has reached double-digit wins six times in Franklin’s 11 seasons, with appearances in seven New Year’s Six bowl games and wins in four.
“I try to look at the entire picture and what we’ve been able to do here,” Franklin said.
After that, Franklin got back to the issue at hand— not getting the job done when the lights are the brightest.
“At the end of the day, we got to find a way to win those games,” he said. “I totally get it, and I take ownership, and I take responsibility. At the end of the day, I wanted that for those kids in that locker room. How hard they work, how much they sacrifice. And we had our opportunities. We had our opportunities, but yeah, I take responsibility.”
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Photo by Matt Lynch, Nittany Sports Now
Penn State fans, as could be expected, were not too happy with the loss.
James Franklin addressed that as well.
“Yeah, we have a passionate fan base,” he said. “111,000. The environment was awesome. They’re passionate. When we win, there’s nothing better. When we lose, there’s nothing worse. I get it, I get the frustration that comes with a fan base that is invested and cares. I get it.”
Tonight’s attendance was the second highest in Beaver Stadium history.
Penn State has now lost each of the top four highest-attended games.
PSU now focuses on UCLA, which it plays at 3:30 on CBS at the Rose Bowl next week.
