Nov. 18, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - Penn State head coach James Franklin is among the 16 semifinalists for the George Munger Coach of the Year Award, which is presented yearly by the Maxwell Football Club. He is one of four Big Ten coaches on the list.
Penn State head coaches have won the Munger Coach of the Year award on four occasions. Joe Paterno won the honor three times in 1990, 1994 and 2005, while Bill O'Brien claimed the award in his first season at the helm in 2012.
Franklin has guided the Nittany Lions to the No. 8 position in the College Football Playoff rankings thanks in part to a six-game winning streak. Penn State is 8-2 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions have won six consecutive Big Ten games in a season for the first time since 1994 and are riding the longest overall winning streak since 2011.
Penn State has improved its regular season win total each season under Franklin. The Nittany Lions were 6-6 in 2014, 7-5 in 2015 and are 8-2 with two games remaining in 2016.
In his sixth year as a collegiate head coach, Franklin has led all six of his squads to bowl berths (3 at Vanderbilt; 3 at Penn State). He is one of 12 active FBS coaches to accomplish guide their first six teams to a bowl berth and one of eight coaches to do so while at FBS program. Additionally, the Nittany Lions are one of seven FBS teams to have posted winning seasons each of the last 12 years.
Among the Nittany Lions' win this season was a fourth-quarter comeback win over No. 2 Ohio State. Trailing by 14 in the third quarter, the Nittany Lions chipped away until a blocked field goal attempt by Marcus Allen was scooped up and returned for a touchdown by Grant Haley for the 24-21 win. Penn State has registered three double-digit comeback wins this year, marking the first time that the Lions have had three double-digit comebacks in a season since at least 1970.
Semifinalist voting for of the Maxwell Football Club Collegiate Coach of the Year award will begin on Friday, Nov. 18 and close on Sunday, Dec. 11. The finalist round will include the top three coaches as selected in the semifinalist round. Finalist voting will open Dec. 12 and run until Dec. 27. The winner will be announced on Dec. 29.
The formal presentation of the George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award will take place at the Maxwell Football Club's National Awards Gala on Friday, March 10, 2017 at the Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Penn State is 8-2 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play after the victory at Indiana Saturday. The Nittany Lions visit Piscataway to take on Rutgers in a primetime battle at 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network. The game will also air on the Penn State Sports Network and GoPSUsports.com (6:30 p.m. airtime).
Single game tickets for the Senior Day tilt against Michigan State on Nov. 26 are still available. To purchase tickets or for more information, fans can visit www.PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 10 a.m-6 p.m.
2016 George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Semifinalists
Nick Saban, Alabama
Mike MacIntyre, Colorado
Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
Urban Meyer, Ohio State
James Franklin, Penn State
Neal Brown, Troy
Ken Niumatalolo, U.S. Naval Academy
Scott Frost, UCF
Kyle Whittingham, Utah
Justin Fuenta, Virginia Tech
Chris Petersen, Washington
Mike Leach, Washington State
Dana Holgorsen, West Virginia
P.J. Fleck, Western Michigan
Paul Chryst, Wisconsin