James Franklin is expected to be named the 16th head coach of Penn State football according to ESPN and CBS Sports. The hire is expected to be made official this weekend, if not sooner.
In a search much quicker than the one to replace head coach Joe Paterno and interim head coach Tom Bradley, athletic director Dave Joyner headed a search committee of six, taking just over a week to negotiate and hire Franklin.
A Langhorne, Pennsylvania native, Franklin was born on February 2, 1972. Franklin attended college at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania where he played as a quarterback all four years. Franklin would set several school records and was a Division II player of the year nominee in 1994. He earned a Bachelors of Science degree in psychology in 1995.
After making stops at 10 different programs between 1995 and 2011, Franklin took over as head coach at Vanderbilt University.
During his three seasons at Vanderbilt, Franklin turned a normally overlooked SEC program into a viable threat to any school in the conference. Vanderbilt went 9-4 and won two bowl games in the second and third seasons under Franklin, going 5-3 and 4-4 in conference play. In 2012, Vanderbilt finished the season ranked No. 23, winning the last seven games of the season.
While the moves have not yet been made official, it is likely that Franklin will bring with him much of his Vanderbilt staff, a nationally recognized assemblage of coaching talent that helped turn the Vanderbilt program around.
No indication has been made at this point regarding the future of long-time Penn State assistant and interim head coach Larry Johnson Sr.
Penn State has not yet confirmed the hire at this time.
Popular Stories:
Penn State Coaching Search: What I’ve Heard Is Telling
Penn State Football: Alex Kenney Set To Transfer To UMass
Penn State Football: Players Here, Search for Coach Optional
Penn State Wrestler Receives Alternative Sentence for Arrest
