Some employees at Penn State believe the university has shown its true colors by paying James Franklin $49 million not to coach the football team.<\/p>\n
Penn State fired Franklin on Sunday<\/a> following three straight losses \u2014 and 12 years in Happy Valley \u2014 putting them on the hook for more than $49 million owed to the coach.<\/p>\n \u201dIt\u2019s a slap in the face to everyone who was told that their campus is too expensive and not good enough to keep open,\u201d Penn State Fayette librarian Heather Page told according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette<\/a>. . \u201cThey want to pay this man. They [don\u2019t] want to pay for the campuses. It\u2019s how they show their values.\u201d<\/p>\n Page added that Sunday\u2019s news proves school leaders will \u201cfind a way to pay for whatever they want to pay for.\u201d <\/p>\n Head Coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks on during the fourth quarter against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium on October 11, 2025 in State College, Pennsylvania. Getty Images<\/p>\n The branch campus that Page works for is one of seven commonwealth campuses \u2014 including the New Kensington, Fayette and Shenango locations in Western Pennsylvania \u2014 that were announced as part of the university\u2019s upcoming closures to cut costs amid enrollment shifts. <\/p>\n Franklin\u2019s $49 million buyout is equivalent\u00a0to about six years of budget at the university\u2019s New Kensington campus, English professor Andrea Adolph told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.<\/p>\n \u201cThat kind of payout is just ridiculous. It\u2019s another wild, \u2018let them eat cake\u2019 [moment],\u201d Adolph said, adding that she understands Penn State\u2019s athletic budget is separate from its general education budget. <\/p>\n Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin walks off the field following the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium on October 11, 2025. Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Last month Penn State president Neeli Bendapudi received a\u00a047 percent pay raise, making her one of the highest-paid public university leaders in the country, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.<\/p>\n Adolph said she believes Bendapudi\u2019s raise and Franklin\u2019s buyout are signs that Penn State leadership decisions have \u201cnothing to do with the reality\u201d of university employees and students.<\/p>\n Franklin\u2019s $49 million buyout is second-biggest buyout in college football history <\/a>after former Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher\u2019s $76 million buyout. <\/p>\n Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin answers questions from the media following the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium on October 11, 2025. Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images<\/p>\n