One of James Franklin’s last captains at Penn State was asked on Zoom Tuesday how he wants his coach to be remembered.
This conversation came two days after Franklin’s firing, a decision Penn State made after 11.5 seasons.
Nick Dawkins was a team captain for two of those seasons, patiently waiting behind talented centers Juice Scruggs and Hunter Nourzad to get his shot.
He got his shot before last season, and became a rock on Penn State’s offensive line.
Now, he’ll be playing his last six games for a different coach.
WHAT DAWKINS SAID
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“Yeah, I don’t know. Probably appreciative of 12 years of loyalty and service to this institution. Brought Penn State out of a living hell. Brought in guys to represent Penn State and still honor the tradition in culture and the standard that’s been set from years before. For the alumni, for the lettermen. Contagious energy. The fighter’s spirit. Toughness, grit. All of the flack and criticism and boos and chants in the face of adversity. Remained a strong shoulder. Remained stone cold for his players, for the university, and that’s the mark of what a real man is. In the eyes of all that is bad, in the eyes of all that is negative against you standing tall for those that are standing with and those that are standing behind you. That’s what he is. He exemplifies a true leader and a real man in this day and age.”
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To Dawkins’ point, Franklin did bring Penn State fully out of the Jerry Sandusky scandal.
When Franklin took the job in 2014, the program was still dealing with the fallout of the sanctions levied two summers prior.
By the end of 2016, Penn State was Big Ten champs.
Franklin has his critics, and those critics do have some fair points: His 4-21 record against top 10 teams and 1-15 record against top five teams are something that plenty will point to.
With that said, it’s hard to argue that Franklin didn’t leave Penn State better than he found it.
