James Geoffrey Franklin is an American football coach and former player. On January 11, 2014, he was appointed the 16th head football coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions. He has coached at both the NFL and college levels for thirty years. After guiding Penn State to the 2016 championship, Franklin became the first African American head coach to win a Big Ten championship.
His record with Vandervilt was 24-15. He has a 125-57 career record with Penn State. He is one of six FBS coaches with all 100 of their first career wins at a Power Four program.
James Franklin's coaching history
James Franklin has been a coach for more than 25 years. In 1995, he started his coaching career as the wide receivers coach at Kutztown University. In 1996, he relocated to East Stroudsburg University to work as a graduate assistant with the secondary. He held several positions throughout his career, including wide receivers coach at James Madison in 1997 and offensive coordinator at Roskilde Kings in 1996. Franklin worked as a tight ends graduate assistant at Washington State in 1998 before taking over as Idaho State's wide receivers coach in 1999.
Maryland (2000-2004, 2008-10)
Beginning in 2000, Franklin was the wide receivers coach at the University of Maryland. Franklin's responsibilities were broadened in 2003 to include recruiting coordinator. Franklin left Maryland in 2005 to become the NFL's Green Bay Packers' wide receivers coach. He rejoined Maryland in 2008 as assistant head coach, head coach-in-waiting, and offensive coordinator.
Kansas State (2006-07)
Franklin was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Kansas State University in 2006 and 2007. Before Coach Bill Snyder returned to the Wildcats after Ron Prince was fired in 2008, Franklin departed the coaching staff.
Vandervilt (2011-13)
At Vanderbilt, Franklin became the first African American to serve as head coach of a major sport. He was the only football coach in program history to lead Vanderbilt to a bowl game in each of his three seasons as head coach. The team had never before played in a bowl game in back-to-back seasons.
Penn State (2014-Present)
Franklin's appointment as the Penn State Nittany Lions' head football coach was announced by the school's athletic department on January 11, 2014. According to USA TODAY Sports, on January 24, 2014, Penn State said that it had agreed to pay Vanderbilt $1.5 million that Franklin owed for the early termination of his contract.
ALSO READ: James Franklin Salary
FAQ's On James Franklin
A. In college, James Franklin played as a quarterback.
A. James Franklin played college football at East Stroudsburg.
A. James Franklin's first coaching position was as a wide receivers coach at Kutztown in 1995.
A. James Franklin was the wide receivers coach for the Green Bay Packers in 2005.
A. James Franklin has coached in 14 bowl games as of August 2025, with a record of 8-6.
