"Gruden at Penn State would be scary": CFB fans stir debate as former NFL coach gets linked to become James Franklin’s replacement

Former NFL coach Jon Gruden is one of the top names circulating in the discussions about James Franklin’s replacement at Penn State. Franklin was let go on Sunday by the Nittany Lions after a narrow home loss to Northwestern.

While Penn State is yet to announce a new hire for the head coaching role, Gruden has revealed he is preparing to return to coaching. Speaking on the Friday episode of “Pardon My Take,” the former New Orleans coach said:

“I absolutely love football. I love it, and it’s pretty much all I have. I have an office, for the people who don’t know. I’ve got a server in there. I just put a lot of money into a server that collects all the films and allows me to study them. Who knows what will happen, but I’m preparing myself as always to coach. But, behind the scenes, we’re getting plenty of football. I promise you.”

Fans have since been sharing their reactions on social media to the prospect of Gruden being James Franklin’s replacement at Penn State.

A fan on X, Panther, wrote:

“Gruden at Penn State would be scary. Especially during the whiteouts with Chucky.”

Quarter Zip Sports also wrote:

“No one is hiring him.”

Tampa 2 CFB commented:

“I really want to see what would happen if he came back to coaching. Would it be a huge dumpster fire, or would he have actual success?”

Privileged also commented:

“Can someone please tell me why they would want this guy to coach their team? He’s barely a .500 coach, never was a head coach in college, and only won a SB because he had Dungy’s team.”

Pigskin Petey wrote:

“He’s gonna be “linked” to every…single….opening. And it’ll always be the latest one he is most linked to.”

Tom Perez commented:

“If he isn’t a coach next year, it’s because he didn’t want to do it. The offers are coming.”

Top James Franklin’s replacement options

Several names have been put forward by fans and analysts alike as likely to become James Franklin’s replacement. An ESPN report projected five names: Nebraska’s Matt Rhule, Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, Iowa State’s Matt Campbell, Duke’s Manny Diaz, and UNLV’s Dan Mullen.

Other sources include Texas A&M’s Mike Elko and Tulane’s Jon Sumrall, among others. The Nittany Lions are set to face Iowa in their next game on Saturday.

About the author

Kayode is a College and High School Sports writer at Sportskeeda since June 2023. Hailing from Nigeria, he has an undergraduate degree in Linguistics and African Languages, and has previously had stints as an entertainment and politics writer for around 7 months. Adept at creating content around historical perspectives, he strives to report stories based only on verified information. His mantra is - truth is always more important than sensationalism.

A fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team, Kayode admires how Nick Saban developed talent at the team and delivered consistent results, and hopes that the post-Saban era is just as fruitful. He is thoroughly impressed by Johnny Manziel’s talent, and feels that Shedeur Sanders is massively underrated. Nick Saban is his all-time favorite college coach.

While Kayode believes there is little to separate college and mainstream sports, pro leagues absorbing the best athletes leads to their quality being higher. Witnessing the Colorado Buffaloes’ hot streak at start the 2023 football season was one of his all-time favorite college sports moments.

When not writing, Kayode enjoys reading and watching sports documentaries. His most recent watch was "Sir Alex Ferguson: Never Give In."

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Edited by Kayode Akinwumi