Paul Finebaum doesn't hold back on Penn State's decision to fire James Franklin

ESPN personality Paul Finebaum shared his take on Penn State's move to fire coach James Franklin. Finebaum weighed in on Franklin's situation on McElroy & Cubelic in the Morning on Monday. Finebaum noted the whirlwind speed of the breakdown between the Nittany Lions and their coach of the last dozen seasons.

Finebaum's Take

I felt like that relationship was over. I frankly thought, Cole, that maybe they would reach some accommodation where it wasn't an absolute firing. But after Saturday, I think they felt they had no choice. In the history of watching college football, I have never-- nor has anyone, I think-- seen a situation go this quickly, this dramatically. I mean, it's really stupefying to think that three weeks... and two days ago this team was ranked No. 2 in the country and they've already fired their coach. So much for the normal standards apply.
Paul Finebaum

Penn State's Slide

Penn State opened the season ranked No. 2 in the initial AP poll. The Nittany Lions held that spot through a 46-11 win over Nevada, a 34-0 victory against Florida International, and a 52-6 win over FCS Villanova. Penn State slipped to No. 3 the following week, but had a competitive battle with No. 6 Oregon at home.

Penn State rallied from a 17-3 deficit with 12:25 to play to send the game to overtime and in fact, scored first in overtime to hold a 24-17 lead. In fact, Penn State took Oregon to fourth down in the first overtime, but the Ducks scored a matching touchdown and then won in the second overtime.

Penn State dropped to No. 7 in the following week's rankings, but then the bottom fell out. Playing at an 0-4 UCLA team that opened as a 25.5 point underdog, Penn State struggled defensively against Jerry Neuheisel's offense. The UCLA assistant was in his first week as offensive coordinator following the early-season firing of DeShaun Foster. Penn State was outgained 435-357 and upset by the Bruins 42-37. The following week brought a 22-21 upset loss to Northwestern as a 20.5 point favorite for an already unranked Penn State squad.

Penn State became the first team to lose as a 20+ point favorite in consecutive weeks in at least 30 years. Franklin took his third and fourth losses as such a substantial favorite in the last six seasons. Penn State then decided to take a loss reported at $48 to $57 million in buyout money to send Franklin packing. As noted by Finebaum, it's an insanely short run from No. 2 in the nation to firing the coach in just 23 days.