James Franklin on Penn State extending Athletic Director Pat Kraft: ‘I’m very, very happy about it”

Penn State dropped a surprise Monday with the announcement that athletic director Pat Kraft had signed a contract extension that will keep him in State College through 2032 . Kraft only joined the program a little over two years ago in July 2022 when he left Boston College to replace former athletic director Sandy Barbour.

In that time, there’s been no shortage of major changes within the athletic department and in college athletics as a whole. However, the growth within the athletic program in a variety of areas has made Kraft a popular figure with both coaches and fans.

That includes the leader of Penn State’s football program, as James Franklin made it clear on Monday.

“I think stability in college athletics and college football has a chance to be a differentiator like probably never before,” Franklin said. “I think it’s always been a differentiator if you look at certain programs across the country, but now I think it’s magnified even more with the amount of turnover that you see. So I think that’s really important.”

Franklin went on to add, “[Kraft] knows Penn State. He understands college athletics, obviously, and the changes that we’re under right now. That stability in the lead position in our athletic department is critical. So, I think it was strategically the right thing to do.”

It’s no secret that the first half of Franklin’s tenure in State College presented some challenges. Facilities were a major need, but staff size and the ability to match competitive offers for assistant coaches by other programs also hindered the football program’s growth at times.

Link: Key takeaways from Penn State coach James Franklin’s press conference

Franklin made it clear that, while things can always continue to improve, having an athletic director as competitive as Kraft has played a big role in helping both Penn State’s football program and other sports be more competitive nationally.

“I think the biggest thing is we got a man leading the department that is a competitor. I’m talking about a fierce competitor in everything he does, and that’s important,” Franklin said. “You guys have heard me say before about the importance of having people in, you know, I hate using this expression, but having somebody in the foxhole with you. Whether that is women’s soccer, or whether that is fencing, or whether that is college football and wrestling, that’s important. To have somebody that can relate, that understands the challenges, that wants to come up with solutions.”

Of course, all the changes that have taken place in college sports overall also present challenges. Kraft, along with Penn State’s deputy athletic director, Vinnie James , have been helpful when it comes to attacking those challenges without always involving the coaches themselves.

“One of the things that I think has stood out to me is Pat and Vinnie’s ability to find solutions for problems that we’ve had or challenges that we’ve had for a number of years. And then, I think the other thing is even bringing some ideas to the coaches in the department without the coaches having to come up with those ideas.

“So I think it’s really good for the university. I think it’s really good for the athletic department, and I think it’s the right thing to do strategically for Penn State moving forward. So I’m very, very happy about it.”

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