Well, James Franklin’s squad might still not be over the Orange Bowl loss. They were just one step away from stepping into the playoffs. Sheer bad luck, folks! However, a college football analyst tried to shake things up for the Penn State Nittany Lions. According to him, Franklin lacks a sense of urgency. Well, they can flip their luck this time. However, the clock is ticking off as the spring portal will soon hit the floors, and Franklin’s laid-back attitude is not going to help. So, the advice for Franklin is to not hoard on to their cash reserve, but rather spend it away to keep the Nittany Lions’ boat afloat.

The 24-27 loss would live in the memory of the Nittany Lions fans for the longest time. After all, it breathes more life into the image of the Franklin’s program as their own worst enemy. Franklin’s boys led by 10 points in the second quarter and had every turn to leave Notre Dame in mere specks of dust. But the running game vanished into thin air in the second half. The Fighting Irish tied the game on a breakdown in the secondary. On the On3 podcast, host J.D. PicKell sounded upset. He stated, “You got Drew Allar for one year man, one year. What happened last season was just I don’t know how you can sleep with yourself at night… you got the ball with a chance to drive down kick one through and go play Ohio State…”

Yes, some recruitment blunders, you see. Allar was 12 of 23 for 135 yards against the Irish and was very ineffective downfield. Franklin’s QB completed just six of the 14 attempts that traveled more than five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. As PicKell continued, “Had the game that close with your entire wide receiving core getting four quarters of cardio, not recording a single catch.” Well, there was a time when Penn State’s offense was one of the Big Ten’s best in scoring (fourth) and total offense (third). Their TE Tyler Warren racked up a Penn State-record 104 catches and 1,233 receiving yards. However, a lack of consistency marred their big games. For instance, against Ohio State, they managed just three catches in a 20-12 loss.

Here PicKell comes up with a solution for Franklin. In his podcast, the analyst imitated an act of flying dollar notes. While doing so he said, “What do you need we want I got a 50…that’s what I need to see from Penn State, man. Like we got to get the wallet out and go to work. I don’t care what it costs.” Now that Allar has made a U-turn while Warren has left, Franklin would need to hoard some more wide receivers. So, how is the Penn State WR room looking now?  

James Franklin is taking baby steps after a reality check 

Well, it already looks very different than it did a month ago. James Franklin and Co. have lost their two wide receiver stars. WR Harrison Wallace III had jumped into the transfer portal and landed at Ole Miss. Whereas Omari Evans moved to Washington. Franklin has filled the two empty wide receiver spots with USC transfer Kyron Hudson, and Troy transfer Devonte Ross and a group of three 2025 recruits have arrived. Thank god, Franklin has finally put down his blinds. 

Earlier, the HC refused to find any faults. Rather believed that the receivers had taken significant leaps, specifically as a team-first unit that impacted the run game. But after the Orange Bowl, he admitted, “I felt like we got better this year. Obviously, when the season ends the way it did, that probably taints the perspective.” Now things are going to be a bit tough for QB Allar. After all, he will be meshing with virtually an entirely new group of receivers. But Franklin sounds all confident, “We obviously went into the transfer portal and got some guys as well who have also been impressive.” However, the HC’s task is not yet over.

They will have to make the most use of the spring transfer portal to bolster the receiver room. However, James Franklin is going to trade the transfer portal with extreme caution. As he stated,  “You have to be careful that you [don’t] get intoxicated by the transfer portal and the possibilities of the transfer portal.” But the clock is ticking folks! April 16-25. Franklin better keep his blueprint ready.