I think he just gave up to be honest. He lacked mental toughness. There was a pattern of dropping games or playing down in games following a loss. That's a lack of resiliency. Some people and organizations galvanize once they take a gut punch. Some cower. If you are mentally tough, you get up and work harder. Also, some people shine in the underdog role.
I didn't see any of that from Franklin. His teams had to be more talented to win and not coming off of a letdown to win. But that isn't real life. You aren't always going to shoot layups. You are going to get challenged. You are going to be humbled. You are going to get knocked down and be forced to pick yourself up and work harder. We weren't a mentally tough team under JF. We were very good at times, but we weren't when you had to be tough.
A good bit of the time this defines your level of success in life. Do you want it more and are you willing to do the things every day to get there? Are you willing to take setbacks and turn them into opportunities? I know more people who have made it very successfully in life by grit and effort than by talent and education. I've posted this previously that I am aware of nearly half of my high school wrestling team's starting weight classes ended up as millionaires before we hit age 50. This is a much higher percentage than any of my AP courses classmates. The common thread in these guys is no quit and they will outwork 90+% of people.
One other wrestler was in AP classes with me and works at Google in NYC and brings in high 6 figures to possibly 7 now. One became a Navy Seal and started a business after his military life. Another retired from the military and invested well. One worked in construction right out of HS and then went back to school (Penn St) and is now a project manager at a high level in construction. One went to our Vo Tech and then took over his dad's small custom counter business and expanded, sold it, and retired before age 50 and lives at the beach now. And the thing is, I haven't kept up with all 13 starters so there may be more that at least hit the 7-figure mark before age 50 (not that this is the measure of success in life, but it could be one of them).
And then I get to our football team where 2 of the 3 starting QBs that I played with have become very successful in life (not sure what the 3rd is doing these days). But one is a partner at a big company and makes 7 figures. One went to an Ivy league school and makes a great living. This is why I love what sports does for kids. Obviously not all, but there are so many good life lessons in sports. And some of the characteristics that make the cream rise to the top in sports, makes them rise to the top in life. They find a way to win. They are tough. They will pick themselves up. They will work harder. They do not give up. That's what I want at PSU football.
