James Franklin’s lasting impression, Temple’s progress, Villanova’s turnaround, and more college football talk

Now that the dust has settled on James Franklin’s firing and the abrupt end to his coaching career at Penn State, one quote from him still resonates.

“I understand the [transfer] portal and NIL are a part of college football and we’ll embrace that, too,” Franklin said in January, wiping away tears after Penn State’s College Football Playoff loss to Notre Dame, “but I want this to be more than transactional. I want it to be transformational.”

The words keep replaying. Transformational, not transactional. In many ways, this approach from Franklin guided his time in Happy Valley, upholding the school’s traditions while hammering in his own messaging to players. The “1-0″ weekly tweet he sent out became a team mindset. The reverence from his former players became clearer as many shared messages of support and thanked the longtime coach in the hours and days following his firing.

The Langhorne native was also never shy to make his thoughts known on a subject. From his comments on wanting a college football commissioner to encouraging all teams to be in a conference to his concerns with the transfer portal and name, image and likeness, Franklin was always ready to speak out on the sport’s most pressing issues.

Even down to the last postgame press conference following a 22-21 loss to Northwestern last weekend, Franklin voiced his concern about his players that he recruited and the staff he hired, past and present.

It was time for Franklin’s run to end at Penn State. There were too many big-game opportunities that turned into losses, especially over the last three seasons, and the program was no longer on the upward trajectory it once was.

» READ MORE: From recruits to redshirts, the work of righting the ship begins now for Penn State interim coach Terry Smith

But in Franklin’s own words, his time as Penn State’s head coach was transformational. In a college football landscape ripe for coaching and roster turnover, Franklin remained loyal to his players, and sometimes his staff, to a fault. He is the reason Penn State is once again a high-profile job.

In time, his era at Penn State will be looked back on more favorably. He raised the program’s floor. Now it’s up to athletic director Pat Kraft to find the next coach to maximize Penn State’s ceiling.

Since Temple trailed by 14-3 at halftime of its Oct. 4 game against Texas San Antonio, its offense has been on a roll, punting on just four of the last 18 possessions. Of those possessions in the last six quarters, nine ended in points and quarterback Evan Simon has completed 33 of 50 passes for 466 yards and three touchdowns.

» READ MORE: Patience and trust have turned JoJo Bermudez into one of Temple’s best receivers

The Owls roll into Charlotte set to face the third-worst rushing defense nationally (224 yards per game), a group that ranks 124th in points allowed per game (32.5).

Coming off a tough one-point loss to Navy, Temple had a players-only meeting and Simon said it has helped the Owls refocus for what’s still at stake this season.

“Our story is still being written. And our goal is to change this program around it, and we are,” Simon told The Inquirer earlier this week. “We’re going to bring it to Charlotte. ... We’re going to see how we respond, and we’re going to play really damn hard.”

A win Saturday will give Temple (3-3, 1-1 American) a fourth victory for the first time since 2019. Two more after that gets the Owls bowl eligible. And they look well on their way with the offense’s productivity lately.

It wasn’t too long ago when there was some serious concern about whether Villanova was taking a downward turn in the season. The Wildcats had lost two straight, allowing opponents to score more than 50 points in both games. Granted, one of those games was against a No. 3-ranked Penn State team at the time, but the 51-33 loss to Monmouth the following week undoubtedly raised eyebrows.

Fast forward a month from that loss to the Hawks, the Wildcats have been on a tear, winning three straight, the biggest victory being against a William & Mary team who Villanova had been unable to defeat dating back to 2019.

Now, coming off another big conference win against Elon, the Wildcats (4-2, 3-1) return home to Villanova Stadium to host two opponents looking up at them in the Coastal Athletic Association standings.

» READ MORE: Shane Hartzell has been the rock of Villanova’s defense. His goal in this final season? Leave a legacy.

First up, Hampton on Saturday (1 p.m., FloSports), followed by Albany on Oct. 25 (3:30 p.m., FloSports). What bodes well? The team is enjoying an 18-game winning streak at home, the second-best home streak in the Football Championship Subdivision.

$49.7 million: That is the number Penn State will pay out as an annuity for Franklin not to coach the Nittany Lions following a 12-year-run as head coach.

No. 5 Mississippi at No. 9 Georgia (Saturday, 3:30 p.m., 6ABC)

The Bulldogs have wanted to prove that they are better than their No. 9 ranking in the Associated Press poll, and this game at home against an SEC rival ranked higher than them is like the icing on an already layered cake. Vegas knows it, too, that’s why Georgia enters as a 7.5-point favorite. But you can’t sleep on an Ole Miss team that knocked off No. 4 LSU and revels in a 6-0 start to the season.

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