Franklin quiets critics as PSU wins CFP opener
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David Hale, ESPN Staff Writer
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — It was exactly the type of moment that would’ve fueled underpinned every criticism leveled at Penn State coach James Franklin, college football’s standard bearer for the “best coach who hasn’t won the big one” label.
Facing a fourth-and-1 at his own 19, up 14 with 9:30 to play in the first half of Penn State’s first-round playoff game against SMU, Franklin left his offense on the field. The unit had done little through three prior drives, but two pick sixes by the defense had the crowd of 106,000 on its feet and SMU on its heels. Now, here was Franklin, rolling the dice in a moment that might be a red carpet for the Mustangs to march back into the game.
And, as it’s gone so many times when Penn State has stared victory in the biggest moments in the face, the call backfired.
“I bet you were tweeting your tail off,” Franklin joked to media when asked about the play afterward.
So, here he was again: Franklin outsmarting himself, stubbing his toes in a critical moment, a decision that would surely doom Penn State again.
Only this time, the story ended differently, and looking back, it was a call that set the tone for what proved to be a dominant 38-10 Penn State win.
Four plays after the doomed fourth-down try, with SMU facing a second-and-goal at the 7, Dom DeLuca picked off a Kevin Jennings pass, the Nittany Lions offense roared to life on the ensuing drive, and a 25-yard Kaytron Allen touchdown delivered what felt like a mortal wound to SMU’s comeback hopes.
“I told the guys we were going to call the game aggressively,” Franklin said. “I wanted them to play aggressively. Don’t play on your heels, play on your toes. Fourth-and-1, I can’t say that all week long and then not do it.”
Saturday’s win — Penn State’s first in the College Football Playoff, and just the sixth in 28 tries against top-12 teams in Franklin’s Nittany Lions tenure — had the feel of a turning point for a program dogged by the criticism that it comes up small too often in the biggest moments.
It was an emphatic statement. It was a big win. And for Franklin, it was victory No. 100 at Penn State.
“Coach Franklin, he gets a lot of criticism that’s undeserved,” Penn State QB Drew Allar said. “He’s done a lot more than people give him credit for. Winning his 100th game is special, and to be a part of that and the team that delivered that 100th win for him and to have it on a stage like the playoffs, at home in Beaver Stadium, it’s truly special.”
The win sets up Penn State for a date with third-seeded Boise State at the VRBO Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31, another opportunity for a signature victory, but in the aftermath of Saturday’s win against SMU, the Nittany Lions were hardly thumping their chests or thumbing their nose at critics of the program.
Instead, it was a moment of celebration.
“I remember in training camp talking to the guys that, I wanted these type of moments for them,” Franklin said. “It’s emotional for all of us. … I appreciate the 100 wins and all that, but to me, I’m at a point in my career, it’s all about the players and the staff.”
And yet it was Franklin’s gamble deep in his own territory, risking all the proverbial momentum on a fourth-and-1, that ultimately sparked life into his offense and secured the outcome.
That the snap was fumbled and the fourth-down try failed will be a fact lost to history should Penn State keep winning. What’s worth remembering, said offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicky, is that neither Franklin nor his team showed a shred of hesitation in making the call.
“He doesn’t get enough credit for what he’s done here consistently,” Kotelnicki said of Franklin.
Penn State is now 12-2 on the season, the program’s first 12-win campaign since 1994. Franklin’s team has won 33 games over the past three seasons. And yet, the absence of marquee wins over Big Ten rivals Michigan and Ohio State and a 2-15 record against top-12 opponents since 2018 has been a dose of cold water on an otherwise historic run.
Allar said he’s used to hearing the grumbling, but Saturday’s playoff game was never about dispelling a narrative or getting Franklin to win No. 100.
“We don’t take these moments for granted, but I don’t care what anybody says from the outside,” said Allar, who threw for 127 yards, ran for 70 and scored twice on the ground. “There’s a lot of people out there that don’t know what goes on behind the scenes. That’s part of playing at a place like Penn State, but it’s part of sticking to our guns and sticking to our process.”
That process, Franklin said, begins anew Sunday.
If a playoff win helped begin to pry a proverbial monkey off his back, the job won’t be finished until Penn State has a national championship trophy, and so the biggest game Franklin wants to win is the next one, he said.
“A lot of college coaches talking about this being a four-game season. It’s not,” Franklin said. “It’s a one-game season. … How you value those reps, how you prepare, will give you an opportunity to play again. We’re in a one-game season and we just extended our season one more game.”
LOS ANGELES — Veteran forward Evander Kane made his season debut for the Edmonton Oilers in Game 2 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday night.
Defenseman John Klingberg also returned from a lengthy injury absence as the Oilers attempted to even the series.
Kane is a 15-year NHL veteran who hasn’t played for the Oilers since Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final last June. He had surgery last September to repair a sports hernia, and he underwent knee surgery in January.
Kane was slotted on to the Oilers’ second line alongside Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman.
Klingberg hasn’t played since suffering a lower-body injury while blocking a shot March 27 in Seattle. The Swedish veteran signed with Edmonton in January after going unsigned early in the season, but he played in only 11 games while dealing with multiple injuries.
The Oilers are hoping Klingberg can help their blue line, which frequently struggled in the Kings’ 6-5 victory in Game 1.
Jeff Skinner was scratched by the Oilers to make room for Kane. The 15-year NHL veteran forward made his Stanley Cup playoff debut in Game 1, recording an assist.
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Ryan S. Clark
Chris Drury and the New York Rangers agreed to a multiyear contract extension on Wednesday, keeping him at the helm of the team’s hockey operations after missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2020-21 season.
“I am pleased that Chris will continue to lead the Rangers hockey operations in his role as president and general manager,” Madison Square Garden chairman and CEO James Dolan said in a statement. “Over his tenure, Chris has shown passion for the Rangers, relentless work ethic and a tireless pursuit of excellence.
“While we are all disappointed in what transpired this past season, I am confident in his ability to guide this organization to success.”
Drury, 48, took over as general manager and president of hockey operations at the start of the 2021-22 season. The Rangers reached the playoffs in his first three seasons.
His future was one of a few items that remained in question, with the intent that the Rangers would use this offseason to reload in their bid to return to the playoffs. The team also is facing a third coaching search in four seasons after firing Peter Laviolette following his two seasons.
“I am honored to sign this contract extension and continue in this position with the team I grew up supporting,” said Drury, a former Rangers captain who played four seasons with the team. “As I said when I began in this role nearly four years ago, there isn’t a more special organization in hockey, and I look forward to continuing our work this offseason to help us reach our goals for next season and in the coming years.”
After winning the Presidents’ Trophy and reaching the Eastern Conference finals under Laviolette in the 2023-24 season, the Rangers started 12-4-1 this season, only to lose the next five games. That started a chain reaction of inconsistent play that ultimately led to the Rangers finishing six points out of the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot.
While the Rangers sought to make the playoffs, Drury also made it known they were open for business in December. That’s when they traded captain Jacob Trouba, who still had a year left on his contract, to the Anaheim Ducks. A few weeks later, they traded Kaapo Kakko, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NHL draft, to the Seattle Kraken for defenseman Will Borgen, who would then sign an extension with the Rangers.
A month before the trade deadline, the Rangers reacquired J.T. Miller in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks. The Rangers also traded defenseman Ryan Lindgren to the Colorado Avalanche and forward Reilly Smith to the Vegas Golden Knights while adding defensemen Carson Soucy in a separate deal with the Canucks.
Still, the Rangers lost four consecutive games in early March before having two three-game losing streaks that further damaged their chances in the Eastern Conference wild-card race.
Now that Drury has a new contract, he’ll be charged with trying to improve a roster that PuckPedia projects will have only $9.67 million in available cap space. K’Andre Miller, Zac Jones and Matt Rempe are part of the club’s eight-player restricted free agent class, while the Rangers have only two unrestricted free agents in Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Calvin de Haan.
Drury will be looking for a coach in what is expected to be a competitive market. Anaheim and Seattle also fired their coaches, and three other teams — Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia — ended the season with interim coaches. The Canucks declined the option on coach Rick Tocchet, but they have offered him a new, more lucrative contract.
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