STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — It’s become a common occurrence to see Pat Kraft, Penn State’s athletic director, jumping up and down on the sidelines at any event. Whether signaling for a takedown during a Penn State wrestling match or waiting to greet James Franklin as he walks off the field, Kraft is seemingly everywhere these days.
In the midst of the multi-year renovation of Beaver Stadium — the project that will be a massive part of Kraft’s Penn State tenure — the university’s Board of Trustees announced Monday a contract extension for the athletic director that runs through June 30, 2032. The average value of compensation is $2.26 million per year, with the opportunity to earn an additional $350,000 per year with incentives, the university announced.
It signals a commitment from both the university and Kraft, who arrived at Penn State in July of 2022.
“Pat has done an amazing job leading Penn State Athletics, achieving new records in philanthropic gifts while always focusing on enhancing student-athlete well-being,” Matthew Schuyler, chair of the Penn State Board of Trustees, said in a statement.
The relationship between Franklin and Kraft remains strong. The alignment between those two is critical as Penn State continues moving forward in the newly expanded College Football Playoff and at a time when name, image and likeness legislation and revenue sharing have taken front and center. Franklin and Kraft have gone to an annual leadership summit together and they’ve bonded on the head coach’s afternoon walks around campus.
Kraft listened as Franklin outlined what he felt his program needed to succeed and presented solutions without Franklin even needing to ask. This offseason, Penn State football added a new training table — essentially a football-only dining hall — in the team’s facility. Franklin highlighted that as an example of something Kraft worked to get done.
“I think we’re probably the only top-10 program maybe in the country that did not have a football training table,” Franklin said. “This is our first year for having it, one that’s in the facility and part of the football building. I think that’s been a huge win for us. … But, as everybody knows, all that matters at this point in the season of the year is how we play.”
Franklin sounded upbeat Monday afternoon as he outlined the importance of having his boss in place for years to come. Franklin’s contract, which was agreed to in 2021 under then-athletic director Sandy Barbour, runs through 2031.
“Stability in college athletics and in college football has a chance to be 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. … 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 always important.”
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Here are other takeaways from Franklin’s Week 1 news conference:
• There was no depth chart released Monday, which has become the norm in the last few years for Penn State. However, Franklin did say he’s “hopeful” that wide receiver Kaden Saunders, who was not spotted during the media’s viewing window at practice last week, will be available Saturday at West Virginia. Franklin said the receiver, who doubles as a punt returner, has been dealing with “bumps and bruises.” Should Saunders not suit up on Saturday, the impact on special teams could be significant.
Remember, this is a team replacing Daequan Hardy, who was a difference-maker as a punt returner. This is also a team that showed players a stat the first week of the preseason which highlighted the number of muffed punts across the country last season. Saunders has been the top punt return option all offseason. His sure-handedness was always highlighted by special teams coordinator Justin Lustig. If he can’t go, safety Jaylen Reed would be among a handful of options.
• Freshman offensive lineman Cooper Cousins and freshman safety Dejuan Lane have both been given the green light from coaches to burn redshirts this season, Franklin said. Deciding who will do so is a conversation that typically unfolds at the end of the preseason. It’s a balancing act figuring out who can see the field but still maintain a redshirt, and while this will change as the season unfolds, I’d first look for these two to get their feet wet on special teams. While it hasn’t been determined yet how much receiver Tyseer Denmark will play this season, he has been mentioned several times by Franklin. So too have freshmen running backs Quinton Martin and Corey Smith.
• My read on the right tackle competition between Anthony Donkoh and Nolan Rucci seems to be a good one. Franklin said they haven’t told either player who will start and what the rotation will look like. Franklin expects that determination to be made on Thursday. Franklin said the competition between the two was “healthy and positive” and the head coach said he “would expect to see a lot of both.”
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• Penn State will continue evaluating the three field goal kickers this week, Franklin said. He said the trio of Sander Sahaydak, Chase Meyer and Ryan Barker have all produced similar results this preseason.
“We think we got three guys we can win with,” Franklin said. “I will say this: All three of them have come within two percentage points on kicks. I want to say it’s like 85, 84 and 83 percent in practice kicks.”
(Photo: Dan Rainville / USA Today)
