James Franklin Says 4 Programs Use Sandusky To Recruit Against PSU

It's been five years since the Jerry Sandusky scandal went down at Penn State, but according to head football coach James Franklin, four major programs still use it to recruit against the Nittany Lions. Per his interview with the Reading Eagle...

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Q: Where do you see the program in 2018?

A: In a really healthy place. The one thing that I can’t predict is when there is going to be finality to everything. A month ago, I’m in Chicago at a wedding of one of my former players and the most recent things (allegations that late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno was told that Sandusky abused children in the 1970s) come up. I spend all Friday and Saturday on the phone talking to all of our players because other schools are contacting them and telling them the NCAA is going to get involved again and impose more sanctions… The people we’re competing with – Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame – this is just not something they have to deal with. Although we want to move on, those other schools are not letting us move on.

Q: How would you describe the challenge of being in the same division with Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State?

A: Like most things in life, there are some real positives about it. We’re able to tell kids they’re going to compete against the very highest level week in and week out. What makes it tricky, they’re not having to deal with some of the things we’re dealing with and working through, which magnifies it. Those programs as well as others know that and use that against us. We have that conversation with every single prospect. We don’t usually initiate it, but it’s coming from somewhere.

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(Yardbarker)