James Franklin Schedules First Interview Since Being Fired From Penn State

The former Nittany Lions coach is scheduled to conduct a live interview on ESPN's College GameDay.

Former Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin walks into Beaver Stadium prior to a game against the Oregon Ducks. | James Lang-Imagn Images

Former Penn State coach James Franklin is scheduled to appear live on Saturday's ESPN College GameDay, six days after being fired. According to ESPN, Franklin will join the GameDay set live from Athens, Georgia, site of Saturday's Georgia-Ole Miss game.

Franklin is scheduled to appear in the 11 a.m. ET hour of GameDay, which airs from 9 a.m. to noon ET on ESPN.

Franklin will make his second appearance on GameDay this season from a much different perspective. On Sept. 27, Franklin joined the GameDay set live from Penn State's Old Main lawn prior to the Nittany Lions' game vs. Oregon.

At the time, Penn State was 3-0 and ranked third in the AP Top 25, while Oregon was sixth. Franklin joined the GameDay crew, who were dressed for the annual Penn State White Out, and said that he expected the Beaver Stadium atmosphere that night to be "the best environment in the history of college football." Three weeks later, Franklin will appear on GameDay as Penn State's former head coach.

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"This will be the best environment in the history college football tonight."

James Franklin is expecting historic scenes at today's Penn State White Out 🤩 🔥 pic.twitter.com/HvvgF310YG

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 27, 2025

A season unravels between GameDay appearances

Former Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin stands on the field following the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Since Franklin's appearance on GameDay, Penn State lost three games by a combined total of 12 points, including that night in double overtime against Oregon. Penn State is 0-3 in Big Ten play for the first time since 2004 (the 2020 COVID-shortened season notwithstanding).

Penn State Athletic Director Pat Kraft fired Franklin one day after the team lost 22-21 to Northwestern, which marked Franklin's final appearance at Beaver Stadium. In explaining his decision, Kraft said that "there just wasn't a choice."

"This was extremely, extremely difficult," Kraft said. "It's been a very difficult 48 hours. I felt after Saturday, and sitting down and looking at everything that where we were and what was in the best interest of my student-athletes ... and where the program was going, that this time we just had to make the hard decision."

ESPN reported a long piece Thursday about how Penn State's season came apart. Quoting multiple anonymous sources, the story painted a picture of a program that tensed under the pressure of enormous expectations to win its first national championship since the 1986 season. Kraft underscored those expectations in his news conference the day after firing Franklin.

"We are all incredibly fortunate to have had James Franklin lead our football program for over a decade, and we will be forever grateful to him and his family," Kraft said. "We wish them nothing, and I mean this, I wish them nothing but success in the next chapter of their lives.

"That said, at Penn State we hold all our programs to the highest standards in our shared pursuit of the excellence. My job is to evaluate everything and make hard decisions for what's in the best
interest of our athletes, our program, and our department. Football is our backbone. We have invested at the highest level. With that comes high expectations. Ultimately, I believe a new leader
can help us win a national championship, and now is the right time for this change."

The Nittany Lions move on

Penn State Nittany Lions defensive backs Audavion Collins (2) and Zakee Wheatley (6) tackle Northwestern Wildcats running back Caleb Komolafe. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

While Franklin is in Athens, Penn State will be in Iowa City, preparing to face the Hawkeyes in their first game without Franklin on the sideline since 2013. Penn State interim coach Terry Smith said this week that the Nittany Lions remain "fragile" after Franklin's firing but promised that the team would play with conviction in a sold-out Kinnick Stadium.

“Each day is getting better," Smith said. "You know, Sunday was really traumatizing to them. Monday they calmed down a little bit but had some anger in them. And then yesterday was, we'll show up for practice, coach, and give you some effort. And today was, hey, we'll run a little harder today.  So I think we're headed the right direction. We’ve just got to close the gap quicker, though.”