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James Franklin's Pregame Comment To Marcus Freeman Goes Viral

Originally posted on The Spun | By Chris Rosvoglou | Last updated Jan 9, 2025 9:30 AM ET

The Orange Bowl is still several hours away from kickoff, and yet, Penn State coach James Franklin is already getting criticized on social media.

During Wednesday's media availability for Penn State and Notre Dame, Franklin tried to praise Marcus Freeman and the job he's done this season. Before doing that, he asked the impressive coach, "How old are you now?" After Freeman revealed that he's just 38 years old, Franklin made a comment about his hairline.

"I mean, look at the hairline on this guy," Franklin continued. "Envious of the hairline in a lot of ways."

This remark from Freeman went viral on social media for a plethora of reasons. Some fans thought it was funny, but the majority found it corny.

"This corny joke is something you say before you get beat. I think I've seen enough. Irish 34-24," one fan predicted.

Another person said, "Ohhh. James Franklin thinks this is a teacher-student thing. The guy that’s 1-14 vs Top 5 teams. Freeman forever. Alt lines."

"I don't know if he meant it to sound this way, but Franklin sounds very condescending. Marcus's smile... Irish are gonna roll," a social media user wrote.

"I mean look at the hairline on this guy... envious of his hairline in a lot of ways." ️@PennStateFball head coach James Franklin had some compliments for Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman during the @OrangeBowl press conference #B1GFootball pic.twitter.com/popM2bFl63
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 8, 2025

Freeman hasn't shown much interest in cracking jokes about his hairline. He's all business heading into the Orange Bowl.

"The mental preparation time has been the same," Freeman said. "For us, it was just a normal week. It was a Saturday to a Saturday, as we look at it in terms of game week. I think the coaches, we probably were a little bit behind to start just because of the travel and in that aspect, but physically our guys were good. Our guys were good, and we’re going to be ready to roll."

Notre Dame looked impressive in the Sugar Bowl against Georgia, make no mistake about it. Penn State had an equally dominant performance against Boise State.

The winner of the Orange Bowl will advance to the national championship game. That would put Freeman or Franklin in position to become the first Black coach to win the national title.

Kickoff for the Orange Bowl is at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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