{"id":2059499,"date":"2025-09-30T11:31:58","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T11:31:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2059499"},"modified":"2025-09-30T11:31:58","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T11:31:58","slug":"same-old-song-franklin-doesnt-duck-latest-big-game-defeat-with-psu-football-news-sports-jobs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/same-old-song-franklin-doesnt-duck-latest-big-game-defeat-with-psu-football-news-sports-jobs\/","title":{"rendered":"Same old song: Franklin doesn\u2019t \u2018duck\u2019 latest big-game defeat with PSU football | News, Sports, Jobs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Photo for the Mirror by Chuck Meyers<\/p>\n

James Franklin looks on in the final moments of the game.<\/p>\n

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UNIVERSITY PARK \u2014 With 12:25 remaining, and the Nittany Lions having managed a mere field goal while trailing 17-3, the Beaver Stadium crowd that James Franklin had asked to make itself a difference had seen enough.<\/p>\n

They pierced the air with a resounding \u201cFire Franklin\u201d chant.<\/p>\n

He obviously heard the message, and he didn\u2019t publicly attempt to refute it.<\/p>\n

Penn State\u2019s 30-24 double-overtime loss to No. 6 Oregon was the latest rerun of Franklin\u2019s big-game failures \u2014 he\u2019s now 4-21 against the Top 10 in his 12-year PSU tenure \u2014 and the common dominator is him.<\/p>\n

He called the White Out environment \u201cawesome,\u201d which it was, and accepted the fans\u2019 input.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we win, there\u2019s nothing better,\u201d he said in subdued remarks shortly after midnight. \u201cWhen we lose, there\u2019s nothing worse. I get the frustration that comes with a fan base that is invested and cares. I get it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Franklin has mastered finding different ways to lose in the highest-profile situations. There have been slow starts, brutal finishes and poor offensive decisions and execution.<\/p>\n

Saturday night against a superior-coached and better prepared Ducks team, it was a combination of all the above.<\/p>\n

Mainly, though, it was an unacceptable offensive showing in which the Lions couldn\u2019t establish a run game and rolled out a pass game that was equally ineffective.<\/p>\n

The Lions converted just six of 15 third-down opportunities, which contributed to lopsided time of possession (19:07-10:53 in the first half), which ultimately wore down State\u2019s otherwise stout defense.<\/p>\n

Penn State managed just 109 total yards in three quarters. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t able to get anything going early in the game on offense, and then we got into obvious passing situations,\u201d Franklin said. \u201cThird-and-long, which was not a great situation for our quarterback \u2026 or for our offensive line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Drew Allar finally woke up in the fourth quarter and helped the Lions reel off 21 straight points, tying the game at 17 late in regulation and taking a 24-17 lead in overtime.<\/p>\n

By then, however, the Nits\u2019 defense \u2014 which didn\u2019t sack slick Oregon quarterback Dante Moore once and allowed the Ducks to convert five of seven fourth-down opportunities \u2014 \u201cran out of gas a little bit at the end,\u201d Franklin said.<\/p>\n

Consequently, Oregon scored a 25-yard touchdown on the first play of the second OT, and Allar\u2019s unforgivable interception on a first-down pass intended for tight end Luke Reynolds added another demerit to Franklin\u2019s resume.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get that narrative, and it\u2019s really not narrative, it\u2019s the facts,\u201d Franklin said. \u201cI try to look at the entire picture and what we\u2019ve been able to do here, but at the end of the day, we got to find a way to win those games. I totally get it, and I take ownership, and I take responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n

Allar, who competed hard and made some tough runs but was erratic, fell to 0-6 against Oregon, Ohio State, Michigan and Notre Dame.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, you have to learn from this game,\u201d Allar said. \u201cThe outcome sucks, but we\u2019re looking for the positives and also the negatives to learn and correct those, so they don\u2019t happen again.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll have to take his word for it since the Lions\u2019 last three losses \u2014 Oregon, Notre Dame and Oregon again \u2014 have ended on Allar\u2019s interceptions. And each one came on a pass that should never have been thrown.<\/p>\n

Franklin and all his assistants to the assistants, along with their analysts and consultants, may want to digest that before the next big moment arrives.<\/p>\n

The majority of the blame fell to the offense, and while coordinator Andy Kotelnicki was supposed to be an upgrade over Mike Yurcich, who was fired in 2023, it hasn\u2019t worked out that way.<\/p>\n

Yet no matter the faces over the years \u2014 the OCs and the quarterbacks \u2014 every button Franklin pushes against the best teams sets off a buzzer.<\/p>\n

The players believe they\u2019re the ones who should be held accountable.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny time we lose, I feel bad for coach Franklin,\u201d defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton said. \u201cI feel like I let him down.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fans beg to differ, and they made that quite clear Saturday night.<\/p>\n

Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com. <\/p>\n

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UNIVERSITY PARK \u2014 Following are the highlights and lowlights from Penn State\u2019s 30-24 double-overtime loss to …<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

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UNIVERSITY PARK \u2014 Penn State quarterback Drew Allar has been statistically one of the better quarterbacks …<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

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UNIVERSITY PARK \u2014 In last season\u2019s Big Ten championship game between Penn State and Oregon, points were handed …<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

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