‘Dominate The State’ Comes Full Circle

In Less Than a Decade, James Franklin’s Signature Line Has Gone From Battle Cry to Whisper to Something Worth Shouting Once Again 

On a dreary, rainy, #basic January Pennsylvania afternoon that won’t wind up pictured in any travel brochures shelved up at Denny’s, newly-hired Penn State coach James Franklin literally opened his mouth, figuratively lifted his leg, and definitively marked his territory during his 2014 introductory press conference when he said:

“Our recruiting philosophy: We are going to dominate the state. We’re going to dominate the state. …That is going to be our plan, and I’m calling all the high school coaches, I’m calling all the people in the state, that we need to come together like never before. And I think with everybody pulling the rope in the same direction, there’s no reason why we can’t take this program where everybody wants it to be.”

In retrospect, the genius of that quote (and the reason it stuck) wasn’t the slogan itself – although, hand up, it was catchy as heck – but rather the time at which Franklin spouted it. Though draconian NCAA sanctions were eventually truncated in September 2014, remember when Franklin initially took the job Penn State was still two full seasons away from being permitted to compete for the Big Ten title or even earn a bowl invite. 

No postseason. No trophies. No rings. 

But, Franklin wisely deduced, what Penn State COULD win were in-state recruiting battles against invading schools like Maryland, Rutgers and Ohio State for thick-necked teenagers from Kennett Square. 

And at first, they did!

Year 1: Success. After posting an uninspiring 7-6 debut campaign, Franklin still managed to land 7 of the Top 10 Pennsylvania high school prospects in the Class of 2015, according to Rivals. And though Penn State didn’t landed the top player in the commonwealth (Jordan Whitehead signed with Pitt) more than half of those elite-PA players who did come to Happy Valley eventually found spots on NFL rosters: Saquon Barkley, John Reid, Ryan Bates, and Shareef Miller.

Since then, however, the phrase ‘Dominate The State’ has devolved into nothing more than some words on an old, ratty t-shirt used to wipe Pledge off dusty wooden shelves. Of note:

• Penn State has only landed the highest-rated PA prep prospect 3 times under Franklin – Miles Sanders, Lamont Wade, and Micah Parsons. During that same 7-recruiting-class cycle, LSU landed the top Louisiana prospect 6 times. Ohio State landed the top Ohio prospect 5 times. Alabama landed the top Alabama prospect 5 times.
• In the James Franklin era, 32.8 percent of the Top 10 Pennsylvania high school players have signed to play at Penn State. During that same span, LSU signed 52.9 percent of Top 10 Louisiana players. Ohio State signed 37.1 percent of the Top 10 Ohio players. Alabama signed 41.4 percent of the Top 10 Alabama players despite Auburn’s competing presence (the rival Tigers signed 27.1 percent of the Top 10 in-state prospects since 2015).
• Since 2015, 15 of Rivals Top 10 PA prospects have played high school football within Philadelphia’s city limits. Penn State only signed 2 of those Philly kids…which is absolutely mind-blogging considering the area’s geographic isolation from any other traditional college football powerhouse. Penn State should RUN Philly, yet the Nittany Lions have signed the same amount of Philly Top 10 talent as Maryland, West Virginia, and Ohio State. Assuming he honors his verbal commitment, 2022 defensive end Ken Talley will be Penn State’s first Top 10 signee from Philly proper since John Reid and Shareef Miller.    

Last December, after Penn State missed out on Nolan Rucci, a 5-star legacy from Lancaster County, Friend of the Blog and Scranton Times-Tribune columnist Donnie Collins wrote: “Dominate The State is not so much a failed plan as it is a quietly abandoned one, one that simply isn’t as important anymore in a recruiting landscape that began to evolve long before COVID-19 necessitated it.”

You sure about all that, James?

For starters, the Pennsylvania population has not gone down. That’s just false. More people live in Pennsylvania today than have EVER lived in Pennsylvania at any point in human history – 13.002 million according to the 2020 census, roughly 300,000 more than the 2010 census. No clue what he’s talking about.

Second, according to a New York Times report that tracked high school football participation from 2009 to 2018, Pennsylvania was 1 of 3 states that saw an uptick in teenage boys playing the sport – a contrast to the national numbers that were down 11 percent coast-to-coast. So, technically, high school football is GROWING in Pennsylvania. 

What Franklin MIGHT have been getting at is that it does appear the amount of talent in Pennsylvania – or at least how high recruiting services subjectively rank that talent – has dropped substantially in less than 20 years. As best we can tell from its website, Rivals began its ‘Rivals 250’ list in 2006. Through the initial 5 years of that list (2006-2010) an average of 9.2 Pennsylvania players per season were included among the nation’s 250 best prospects. In the last 5 years (2017-2021), that average has plummeted to 5.2 players per year. 

But, if that’s the case and there’s less top-shelf talent in Pennsylvania, doesn’t that make it IMPERATIVE for Franklin and Co. to ‘Dominate The State’ even more than ever before and not let SEC schools like Georgia, Florida and Alabama fly north to vulture PA blue-chippers like D’Andre Swift, Kyle Pitts, and Christian Barmore??!?!

Well, you’d think so. 

Instead, Penn State decided to expand its usual recruiting footprint and venture into player-rich states like Florida and Texas. And while the Nittany Lions have successfully plucked players from these fertile football areas, the strategy has largely been a flop. Of the 10 players Penn State has signed from Florida and Texas since 2018, only one (Noah Cain) was ranked amongst their respective state’s Top 10 players and 5 have already transferred elsewhere: Judge Culpepper, Trent Gordon, John Dunmore, Isaiah Humphries, and  TJ Jones. 

Which brings us to the Class of 2022…and the apparent revival of the ‘Dominate The State’ philosophy. 

Despite not making 2022 No. 1 PA prospect Enai White’s final list of schools, Penn State secured commitments from the aforementioned Talley, York quarterback Beau Pribula, Lancaster WR Anthony Ivey, and Harrisburg athlete Mehki Flowers – all Rivals PA Top 10 guys at some point in this cycle – prior to the summer. Then, when the COVID in-person, on-campus recruiting dam finally burst this June, Penn State hosted a bevy of in-state talent on official and unofficial visits each and every weekend – trips that helped re-affirm quasi-in-state 4-star left tackle Drew Shelton’s commitment to the Nittany Lions (he transferred from Downingtown to Florida football factory IMG Academy last winter) and stiff-armed a late push from Notre Dame for the verbal of Reading RB Nicholas Singleton yesterday.