Neither goes by Jimmy.
It’s Jim Harbaugh. And James Franklin.
(Why is it James and not Jim? The definitive answer is here.)
Both head coaches entered The Big Empty House on Saturday with 49 victories in the past five-and-seasons, dating back to the beginning of 2015.
That was the year that Harbaugh returned to his alma mater. It was Franklin’s Year 2 at Penn State, the program still very much reeling from a scandal and sanctions and myriad repercussions, despite the heroic efforts of Bill O’Brien & Co.
Saturday was the line of demarcation for the two Jimmys of the Big Ten East, unified by given name, big-bucks paychecks, disgruntled fan bases and the unforgiving and (mostly) unaccomplished deed of beating the Buckeyes.
When it was all over, Franklin left Michigan with Win No. 50 (actually, 57 overall at PSU) and Harbaugh simply left. After games against Maryland, Ohio State and TBA, the Man in the Khakis may be gone for good.
Penn State’s 27-17 victory was a salvation of sorts for Franklin, who is still in danger of equaling the number of conference losses (six) he sustained in 2014, while the loss put Harbaugh — nearing the end of Year 6 of a seven-year deal — one step closer to leaving Ann Arbor.
James is moving forward. Jim could be moving on.
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF WINNING
In some ways, you can’t downplay the importance of the win for Franklin. It was his 85th game (57-28, .670) at Penn State and likely one of his top half-dozen victories. Also: Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin, 2016; Michigan, 2019; Fiesta and Cotton Bowls.
Center Michel Menet is the kind of steady and measured sort you would expect from a bearded and burly center and two-time team captain. Menet has been at Penn State since he took a redshirt season in 2016, and thus has been through the highs of 43 victories and lows of 16 losses — including five defeats in a row to start 2020. He ranks Saturday’s win over Michigan, Penn State’s first win in the Big House since 2009, among his biggest at PSU.
‘It was in the Top 5, because we were oh and 5 coming into this game,’ Menet said, ‘and this team just needed to win more than anything right now. It just goes to show you that you need to keep trusting the process and keep doing what you are asked to do by the coaches.’
Menet, a pyschology major, understands the mental and emotional impact of such a victory. So does Franklin, who was a psych major himself as an undergrad at East Stroudsburg.
Franklin, in a post-game Zoom call with the media, was as relieved and effusive and enthused and downright breathless as I’ve seen him after a victory.
‘There are things that would have put us in a rut where we would have had a hard time fighting back through, when it doesn’t feel fair,’ Franklin said post-game. ‘But life isn’t fair sometimes, you just have to find a way to battle through it. Our guys stood in the corner and they took body blows and head shots and they kept swinging.’
No one kept swinging harder than quarterback Sean Clifford, who played ball- and self-control football, gamely ran for a TD and did not turn the ball over for the first time in a contest in which he played since the 2019 Ohio State game.
‘I felt like I was back to the Sean that I used to be,’ Clifford said.
A communications student with a minor in psych, Clifford has been a invested part of the Penn State program one way or another, in word and deed — from the first commit in his class to risen-from-the-dead starting QB — for 1,966 days and counting, having verbally committed on July 13, 2015, the day before he turned 17.
Cliff is all in, in all he does. Always has been. After the game, on Zoom I asked him to rank where the victory over Michigan ranked. He didn’t bite.
‘Every win is fun,’ Clifford said. ‘I think it’s definitely meaningful for the team because all the adversity we fought through. A lot of these guys just keep attacking and coming back. Nobody’s given up at all, and it showed today and that’s one reason why it was so fun to win. Winning is hard — and losing is harder.’
PROS AND CONS
Franklin discovered that in 2005, especially, when he was a wide receivers coach with the Green Bay Packers. They lost seven of their first eight games, and finished 4-12. Head coach Mike Sherman and the entire staff were fired the day after the season ended. Franklin, all of 33, was in the NFL for 314 days and never went back.
Now, Harbaugh — a Michigan Man who played 14 seasons in the NFL as a quarterback and coached the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl — may be heading back to the pro ranks.
If Harbaugh does leave, it will not be as a victor, but as the vanquished. Franklin is 3-3 vs. Harbaugh, but James’ .500 record against Jim is better than Jim’s .500 record against James, if such a thing is possible. Franklin started in a bigger hole and has won three of their last four meetings.
True, Brady Hoke’s last three seasons at Michigan (2012-14) were not of stellar quality, as the Wolverines went 20-18 in the three years following Hoke’s inaugural 11-2 campaign, in 2011. Which was preceded by the fiasco that was Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez’s 15-22 reign in 2008-10.
You know all about what Franklin faced.
THE TWO JIMMYS
So, through those lens, while neither Jimmy has been able to rise to the elite land that resides inside The Horseshoe, Franklin has had the better run, even with an Owen Five start in 2020. The biggest difference? Grant Haley’s scoop ‘n score that led to Penn State’s 24-21 upset of Ohio State in 2016 and subsequent Big Ten title.
Harbaugh may have ended with up sleep-over buddy Quinn Nordin — the kicker was out with an injury on Saturday — and U-M O-coordinator and former Franklin disciple Josh Gattis, who is likely out, as in gone, after the 2020 season.
But Franklin has built the better program, top to bottom, in more challenging circumstances. (It is interesting to note, however, that Harbaugh’s Big Ten record is significantly better than Franklin’s. However, 11 of CJF’s 23 Big Ten losses have come in two seasons, 2014 and 2020.)
Comparing records:
At current school — Franklin, 57-28 (.67058); Harbaugh, 49-22 (.69014).
Big Ten Conference — Franklin, 35-23 (.603); Harbaugh, 34-16 (.670).
Against Ohio State — Franklin, 1-6; Harbaugh, 0-5. Michigan-Ohio State is scheduled for December 12 in Columbus.
Against Michigan State — Franklin, 2-4; Harbaugh, 3-3. Penn State-Michigan State is scheduled for December 12 in Beaver Stadium.
Against ranked teams — Franklin, 9-15 (.375); Harbaugh, 11-16 (.407).
Against Top 10 teams — Franklin, 2-10 (.167); Harbaugh, 2-12 (.142).
Big Ten championships — Franklin, 1 (2016); Harbaugh, 0.
Bowl games — Franklin, 3-3 (2-1, NY6); Harbaugh, 1-4 (0-2 NY6).
Who knows, Harbaugh may stay at Michigan another year, and improve upon those records. And Franklin could leave for USC, Texas, the NFL or a gap year.
But, for now, when it comes to the Big Ten East, James is the better Jimmy.
