Photo: Getty Images
The Penn State Nittany Lions have fired head football coach James Franklin after 12 seasons with the program, the school announced on its official website Sunday (October 12).
The decision to fire Franklin, 53, came after losing three consecutive games after ranking No. 3 overall in the Associated Press Top 25 poll prior to the losing streak. Associate head coach Terry Smith will serve as the Nittany Lions' interim for the remainder of the 2025 college football season.
Franklin was hired by Penn State in 2014 after leading Vanderbilt to its greatest three-year stretch in program history. The Pennsylvania native led the Nittany Lions to a 104-45 (64-36 Big Ten) record in 12 seasons, which included a Big Ten championship in 2016 and Big Ten Championship Game appearance in 2024, having also made the College Football Playoff before being defeated by Notre Dame in the 2025 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl in January.
“Penn State owes an enormous amount of gratitude to Coach Franklin who rebuilt our football program into a national power,” said Penn State Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Patrick Kraft, who will lead the national search for the program's next head coach, via GoPSUSports.com. “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.”
Penn State will face Iowa in Week 8 on Saturday (October 18).