Congratulations to Northwestern Interim Coach David Braun and Penn State coach James Franklin. You two have entered the chat on this college football season’s predominant theme. See Lou Holtz vs Ryan Day and Deion Sanders vs, well, everybody he has played thus far. You know that old cliche: “we don’t hear any of the outside noise. We don’t pay attention to the critics. We never hear the doubters. We don’t read the press clippings.”
It has always been total b.s. But now, this season, this platitude has never been more inaccurate. Watch the video below.
Penn State Coach James Franklin is mocking the dead quiet stadium at Northwestern. They are practicing with no loud music because the atmosphere is awful at Northwestern and players will need to motivate themselves and play for each other because there won’t be stadium energy. ? pic.twitter.com/FrOfdBgTeB
— Ben Booth (@TheBenBoothShow) September 29, 2023
Norhwestern only drew about 15,000 for their season opener against UTEP. For their second game, against Minnesota, they drew just 20,000 (in a stadium that holds 47,000). So you can see where Franklin was coming from. After his #6 team in the country pulled away late, turning what had been competitive in the first half into a rout (complete with a back door cover), Braun was asked about James Franklin’s quietude quote.
Braun got noticeably riled up, at least a bit, and here is his full statement:
“Do we know when Penn State returns to Evanston and Ryan Field? I tell you what, I saw a group of student section, maybe not right at 11 o’clock, but as the game wore on, I saw a student section that started to show up. I saw a group of energized fans in that…”
…first half and I see a football program that’s trending in the right direction. New stadium on the way. I look forward to inviting coach Franklin and Penn State back to Ryan Field and seeing what type of environment we can create for them next time he’s here.”
In the words of Kent Brockman “touche.” Maybe a retort from Franklin is coming?
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.