James Franklin Has Earned Confidence During Penn State’s Playoff Run | JOHNSON

The semi-final round of the College Football Playoff is nearly here for Penn State Football and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Both teams have played in big games, both teams have won multiple national championships.

But, for Penn State‘s coach, James Franklin, and Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, the upcoming Orange Bowl is the biggest game of their careers.

Both have two CFP victories behind them. but their coaching records are quite different.

Which coach inspires more confidence? Well, Freeman has been a head coach for three seasons. That’s long enough to see that he’s done an incredible job but not long enough to know if he’s championship material, although that could be determined within the next few weeks.

But what about Franklin?

Does Franklin Inspire Confidence in Big Games?

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James Franklin is Changing The Narrative this Playoff

Franklin has been Penn State’s head coach for 11 seasons. The longevity of his tenure in Happy Valley is evidence of his success as a coach.

Yet, he’s never won a championship. Forgive me for beating the poor, dead horse.

The college football world has talked this point to death. But what’s better, a coach who wins nearly every game but can’t win a championship or a coach who seems to pull the magic season out of a hat?

Okay, okay, a coach who doesn’t show the consistent ability to win very rarely wins the championship in college football, but you get my point. Sometimes it’s luck and sometimes it’s skill.

But luck can’t be quantified, improved (debatable), or tracked. That’s why a team just needs a flat-out winner.

Franklin has consistently shown that ability to win. Even in big games. He’s shown it in previous seasons when Penn State won the Big Ten championship. He’s proving it throughout the playoffs this year. What I’m getting at is that even the best of coaches may not win national championships. College football is a cruel, fickle thing.

So, can we please stop with this narrative?

All of that is to say that we should believe in Franklin’s ability to take this team to the finish line.

Franklin has his team in the right place. They’re coming off the dismantling of two playoff teams and confidence is high.

This team feels different.

Now is the time for James Franklin to prove to the world that he can take his team to new heights.

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• Latest Betting Line Moves Away from Penn State in Orange Bowl
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