ALTOONA, Pa. -- Even though we knew it was coming, based on speculation from recent days, it was still a jaw-dropping moment to see all the numbers in James Franklin's new contract. And then when looking at the numbers even closer, it led to another jaw-dropping moment.
Analyzing the totality of it all, there are two conclusions I can make from the coach's historic new deal.
1. James Franklin won. Everything.
2. Penn State caved by essentially giving the coach everything he possibly could have wanted, despite his struggles since the start of last season. The school was so afraid Franklin might leave for another job that it overpaid to keep him. And then put itself behind the 8 ball with a particularly one-sided buyout situation.
As a result, Franklin hit a 9-run home run here and seems to have cleaned up in this entire negotiation process.
Penn State announced Tuesday afternoon that Franklin is getting a new 10-year contract that will pay him $85 million, if he stays for the life of the deal through 2031. That's an average of $8.5 million per year, up from the $7 million he was making in the contract he signed just two years ago and that ran through 2025.
On top of the money, Franklin and the university have agreed upon the necessary resources and improvements that will need to be made to get the program to the level where he believes it needs to be in all aspects to compete with the most successful programs around the country.
Penn State is 7-4 this season and went 4-5 last season under Franklin, leading many people to wonder how much leverage he could even have with Penn State after his name came up in connection with jobs at USC and LSU.
It turns out that, despite the struggles on the field, Franklin maintained an incredible and pretty much unbelievable amount of leverage, based on the contract terms.
"Penn State's future is bright, and I'm honored to continue to serve as your head football coach," Franklin said in a university release. "Nine weeks ago, the administration approached me about making a long-term investment in our football program. This prompted numerous conversations outlining the resources needed to be competitive at a level that matches the expectations and history of Penn State. What's most evident from those conversations is the importance of our student-athletes' success both on and off the field.
"With the support of President (Eric) Barron, (AD) Sandy Barbour and the Board of Trustees we've been able to create a roadmap of the resources needed to address academic support, community outreach, Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), facility improvements, student-athlete housing, technology upgrades, recruiting, training table and more. This renewed commitment to our student-athletes, community and fans reinforces all the reasons I've been proud to serve as your head football coach for the last eight years and why my commitment to Penn State remains steadfast. Throughout this process I've kept our leadership council, recruits and staff updated on those conversations and I'm excited we've reached an agreement we can finally share with you."
Here are the terms of Franklin's contract, and these numbers will not change throughout the duration of the deal:
• Base salary: $500,000 per year
• Supplemental pay: $6.5 million per year
• Annual life insurance loan: $1 million per year
• Retention bonus: $500,000 per year
So, that's a total of $8.5 million a year, all guaranteed as long as he remains the coach.
If there's one area where perhaps Franklin did not take Penn State to the cleaners here, it's in the fact that he will not get a raise at any point during the contract term. Given inflation, the money he'll be making now, therefore, won't be worth as much in the latter years of the contract.
We knew over the past couple of days that the total figure for Franklin probably would come in around $80 million or a bit more, so those figures aren't much of a surprise.
The following figures, to me, were a huge surprise. And an indication that Franklin was able to maintain all leverage in the negotiations.
This is how much Franklin would have to pay in a buyout, if he leaves voluntarily to take an NFL or college coaching job:
• Before April 1, 2022: $12 million
• From April 1 to Dec. 31, 2022: $8 million
• Calendar year 2023: $6 million
• Calendar years 2024 or 2025: $2 million
• Calendar years 2026-30: $1 million
As you can see, Franklin would have to pay a hefty price if he leaves in 2022 or 2023. But after that, if he decides to leave for another job, he can get out of his Penn State contract extremely easily with a very low buyout.
The potential problem with that is, say his name starts coming up in connection with other jobs again in three years, there would be NO STOPPING Franklin from going through this entire process again. He could play coy with the media and fans when it comes to job rumors, hold Penn State hostage again if he's heavily desired and still walk without much of a buyout penalty at all.
The following tweet says it all:
Look at the buyout numbers. Penn State just gave James Franklin a license for us to keep having this conversation every year.
— Andy Stine (@RiseAndStine) November 23, 2021
Oh, but what if Franklin struggles as a coach over the next few years? You know, as he has this season and last?
What if Penn State got to the point where it wanted to fire Franklin for poor performance as a coach?
It would cost the school a TON.
If Franklin is fired without cause, Penn State would owe him $7 million times each of the remaining years left on the contract.
Wow! That is an incredibly one-sided scenario there with the buyout stuff that gives all leverage to Franklin and none to Penn State, if the coach struggles.
Let's say Franklin coaches at Penn State five more years, hits some snags, can't beat ranked opponents, can't beat Ohio State and can't get into the College Football Playoff. If the university decided to move on from him at that point, it would still owe him $35 million.
Again, when you juxtapose that with the relatively paltry amount Franklin would have to pay if he wants to leave, and one thing becomes apparent.
Penn State caved. Period. It basically gave Franklin everything he wanted and every possible advantage in the future.
It caved for a coach who, despite his successes, also has had some major issues at times, and there are no guarantees he can turn Penn State into the elite program that he promised three years ago.
If Franklin succeeds at a high level, then all of this is a moot point. But again, when you consider the struggles of the football team since the start of last season, is it not fair to wonder why the university would show such complete faith in Franklin that it would grant him such an enormous victory in the negotiations?
Plain and simply, Barbour is taking a big risk here that Franklin is such an excellent coach that the university will never have to deal with him struggling down the road and potentially needing to be replaced.
"We are excited to have James Franklin lead our football program for a long time," Barbour said in the university release. "We will continue our collective efforts to constantly improve in all aspects of our program. We have made, and will need to continue to make, significant investment in our football program because we believe we have a very bright future under James. With this contract, we are signaling our sustained commitment to being one of the premiere programs in the history of college football. Our goals and aspirations relating to football have never wavered and our investments today and in the future of our program will allow us to compete at the highest level.
"James has been a tremendous leader, providing a Penn State standard of care and attention to all aspects of growth and development for our student-athletes. Our young men have benefited from his guidance academically, socially and athletically. I'm thrilled James has committed to Penn State and to providing that leadership for years to come. I'm looking forward to years of impact for students and community for our football program under his leadership and to the Franklin family remaining valued and prominent members of our community. I know there will be much success ahead for our football program with Coach Franklin at the helm."
Penn State is betting huge on Franklin because it wants stability, and he provides that. He has done some wonderful things from a football standpoint, and it also should be noted that he runs a clean program that graduates players and represents Penn State well. There is value in all of that, and Penn State's leaders clearly were willing to pay for it.
I asked the question in a column earlier this week if Franklin is worth 10 years and $80 million, and the feedback I got from a huge percentage of fans was a resounding no.
None of that matters now, however. The coach got his new contract, and it's up to him to prove that he's worth all of the faith the university is placing in him.
