The silver football that normally rests atop the Big Ten championship trophy has been a constant companion for Penn State head coach James Franklin the past couple of months.
Franklin joked that Wednesday's national signing day press conference was the first time since the Nittany Lions beat Wisconsin on Dec. 3 that the ball had not been in his possession. He had carried it around with him to high schools and home visits, an important prop in efforts to sway potential recruits toward State College.
"There's an excitement, a buzz around our program," Franklin said. "We hadn't won a Big Ten championship in over 20 years. Everybody talks about the history and tradition at Penn State, and it's as good as anywhere. But there had been a little bit of a lull, a little bit of a dip."
Not anymore. It's good to be a Nittany Lion these days. Instead of answering questions about NCAA sanctions or Joe Paterno, Franklin can simply show recruits that silver football.
In reality, most of the prospects who made up Penn State's No. 17-ranked class, according to ESPN Recruiting Nation, had been in the fold or wooed for several months, so the Big Ten title didn't have that much immediate impact. But the team's success is already showing up in future classes, as Franklin and his staff already have seven ESPN 300 commits for 2018. That equals the number of ESPN 300 players they signed this week.
The championship and Rose Bowl appearance did help Penn State close on a few players during this cycle, including four-star defensive back Lamont Wade.
"We had his mom, dad and sister for a while," Franklin said. "But I think winning helped with Lamont, because he had so many different options. He was in position to be picky and look for [a school] that could give him it all."
This is the third straight top-20 class under Franklin, which is pretty remarkable given where the program stood when he took over. He has reminded people frequently that the Nittany Lions had only nine scholarship offensive linemen when he started. That position really struggled for a couple of years, but the coaching staff resisted the urge to play too many true freshmen. They redshirted Ryan Bates in 2015, and he made several freshman All-America lists last season. Michal Menet and Will Fries, standout offensive linemen from last year's class, also spent a year on the sidelines and in the weight room. This class includes four well-regarded offensive linemen.
"In the short term, it was painful and difficult," Franklin said, "but I thought it was the right thing to do for the program moving forward. We've got that depth and talent now to allow those guys to grow and mature, which will help us to lay the foundation for success."
Franklin sees Wade, an early enrollee, competing right away for time in the secondary and in the return game. But Penn State, which had only four senior starters in the Rose Bowl, has the luxury of using true freshmen only if they're ready to contribute. The 2017 team, which has already garnered some top-5 preseason rankings, will have veteran stars like running back Saquon Barkley and quarterback Trace McSorley to lean on.
"We've gone from being one of the youngest teams in the country to being one of the more experienced ones," Franklin said.
Franklin said one of his concerns with recruiting going forward is being careful not to move too fast because so many prospects have interest in joining the program. That's a good problem to have, and it shows that it's a good time to be Penn State right now.
