Are James Franklin and Penn State Closing in on a New Deal?

Penn State coach James Franklin didn’t deny that he told The State College Quarterback Club earlier this week he’s “not going anywhere” but he didn’t expand much on those comments either following the Nittany Lions’ 28-0 win over Rutgers on Saturday.

The Quarterback Club is a longstanding weekly luncheon during which Franklin, like his predecessors, talks openly and candidly about the program under the strongly respected presumption that comments are made off the record and not to be repeated outside the event.

“I’d like to right now talk about Rutgers,” Franklin said following the victory. “I get it. I’d like to talk about Rutgers. I made that statement because I thought something was going to happen a little bit sooner.

“Tuesday [Franklin’s weekly press conference date] we can talk about that as much as you guys want to talk about that. I’d like to talk about Rutgers. I get it and I understand the questions. I’ve tried to tell you guys before, these things are much more complicated than just a simple yes and no answers and with me, I just am always trying to be as transparent as possible and tell you guys what I know and when I say something, it’s going to happen. If we could wait until Tuesday, I’d appreciate it, but I also understand the question.”

While Franklin didn’t specify what exactly he was waiting to happen, conventional wisdom suggests that Penn State’s eighth-year head coach appears close to signing a new deal that would keep him in State College for the foreseeable future. Franklin has been a hot name to watch during the early stages of the coaching carousel for head coaching jobs at USC and LSU, but in neither case has Franklin been linked to actual interviews for those positions.

The Penn State Board of Trustees Subcommittee on Compensation is scheduled to hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday, although the purpose of that meeting is not yet clear as an agenda has yet to be released.

Additionally, a program source with knowledge of ongoing conversations stated that both Franklin and Penn State have been discussing his future with Penn State for nearly as long as Franklin’s name has been in the news for other potential and current openings. Those conversations have led to substantive proposed changes, although as was the case for Franklin’s two previous contracts at Penn State, the talks have been less about annual compensation and more about resources around Franklin, including facility upgrades and assistant coach salary pools.

It is assumed that any new deal would also see Franklin’s own take-home pay increase as well, although much like his previous two deals, much of that money has been backloaded toward the end of his contract.

While he has not stated those terms publicly as it pertains to his own contract demands, Franklin has spent a not-insignificant portion of his public media appearances this season discussing the importance of Penn State becoming competitive in various areas away from the field of play, including the ability to retain assistant coaches and offer student-athletes a top-of-the-line experience.

Franklin’s previous contracts did not disclose peripheral agreements around the program and Penn State has never announced contract details for assistant coaches. It remains to be seen if that would hold true under any new deal or if Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour would opt for a more transparent approach if Franklin were to sign a deal that would ostensibly keep him at Penn State well into a second decade.