“He was Angry” How James Franklin Fueled Notre Dame’s Furious Orange Bowl Comeback

Penn State coach James Franklin inspired Notre Dame’s second-half comeback, according to a report from The Athletic, following the Nittany Lions’ Orange Bowl loss in the College Football Playoff Semifinals.

In the first half, Penn State dominated the game, going into the half with a 10-3 lead and over 150 yards of offense. ESPN’s win probability tracker gave Penn State a 71.1%-win probability after the halftime break. So, what changed the outcome?

James Franklin Press Conference Spark Lights Notre Dame’s Fuse

During the Orange Bowl press conference featuring Franklin and Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, Franklin asked the 38-year-old Freeman how old he is, and admitted to being “jealous” of the Fighting Irish coach’s hairline.

For those of us without hair, that really is a compliment. But not for Freeman. He felt disrespected.

That disrespect could have gotten into Freeman’s head, but he channeled it into a fiery, angry passion. His team felt that disrespect too, with players speaking out about it:

“He was angry. He was angry with the press conference thing, whatever was going on between that,” safety Xavier Watts said, via The Athletic‘s Pete Sampson. “He was mad about that. All the anger went toward us and that anger went onto the field.”

Watts wasn’t the only one who noticed, as Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love felt the tension from before kickoff against Penn State.

“I’m not gonna speak on their head coach, but we felt like their team didn’t really respect us,” Love said. “We wanted to come into this game and make a statement. Be the aggressors. Dominate them physically. That’s the message. Be physical and play violent. The whole game.”

 

No doubt Freeman used that disrespect to infuse anger into his team at halftime.

Notre Dame came out swinging, playing much better football than in the first half. It’s bad enough that Franklin has now lost more than 10 in a row against top 5 teams.

It’s bad enough that he squandered his opportunity to shed the Big Game James reputation and nickname. But he had to go and fuel the fire with silly comments?

With the chance to run it back next year, Franklin needs to take a long, hard look in the mirror.

His W-L record is impressive but means nothing with a 1-19 record against AP top 5 teams.

Something needs to change. How about bringing in receivers that contribute? If Franklin can’t make the necessary changes, it’ll be Penn State’s athletic director who needs to consider some changes.

MORE Penn State Football News from NittanyCentral:

• James Franklin Calls for Major Change Across College Football
• Abdul Carter NFL Mock Draft Roundup: Penn State Star’s Most Likely Destinations

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