Here’s everything James Franklin said about Penn State WR Justin Shorter after practice
A day after reports surfaced of Penn State wideout Justin Shorter entering the transfer portal, head coach James Franklin confirmed the news while declining Wednesday night to give a firm answer on whether the redshirt freshman can choose to return.
When asked whether the timing of Shorter’s declaration might influence whether he can return to the program — the Nittany Lions’ regular-season finale takes place 3:30 p.m. Saturday against Rutgers — Franklin simply said every case is unique.
“It’s not like a black-and-white deal,” the head coach said. “Every situation is different based on how they leave, how they communicate, why they’re leaving. There’s a lot of factors that go into it.”
Safety Lamont Wade entered the transfer portal in January and had his locker cleaned out. But he returned to the program later in the month, eventually turning into a dependable starter this season. It’s unknown whether Shorter’s situation is similar.
What is known is that Franklin and Shorter, the nation’s No. 8 overall prospect in the 2018 class, met sometime before 12:30 p.m. Tuesday to discuss the transfer portal. By 1:15 p.m., Yahoo! Sports’ Pete Thamel reported Shorter was in the portal. Ten minutes later, Franklin was asked about the report during his weekly press conference and declined to confirm it. “I don’t know enough,” he said. “Literally, we’re just having a conversation and walking out when I came here. I’m not sure where we’re at.”
Other media outlets, such as 247 Sports and ESPN, confirmed the initial report soon thereafter.
On Wednesday night, Franklin spoke broadly about the transfer portal, the graduate transfer rule and transfers after practice. But he seemed to intimate that part of Shorter’s issue might’ve stemmed from his production and/or his expectations.
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound redshirt freshman caught just 12 passes this season for 137 yards and no touchdowns. The former five-star recruit was benched after the Minnesota game, following two drops and a missed jump-ball that was intercepted, and former walk-on Dan Chisena started the most recent two games in his place.
“If we had the transfer portal when Mike Gesicki was here, would it have played out the way it did, which he had a really tough year?” Franklin asked, referring to the past Penn State tight end who struggled early in his career. “He battled through it, came back, had an unbelievable year and just saw the other day caught a touchdown pass (in the NFL). Miami Dolphins, graduated, awesome.”
Franklin alluded to another former player who was also in a similar position, Allen Robinson. He had just three catches as a freshman in 2011 but had 77 and 97 receptions in his next two seasons. Robinson left for the NFL as a junior; he’s currently on a 3-year, $42 million deal with the Chicago Bears.
“I do believe strongly that college athletics, and athletics probably in general but specifically college athletics, I felt like really taught adversity and battling through things,” Franklin said. “And that’s — this has changed that dynamic. And I think the best stories to me are the guys that have battled through it.”
Franklin said recruiting is happening in the transfer portal, and it shouldn’t be. Franklin also reiterated past points that he’s made, including that he’d like the portal process to be uniform among all teams — as far as whether players can return, whether they can still play, etc. And he believed the issues with this all trace back to one prior NCAA rule.
“The other thing I would say is this all started with the graduate transfer (rule), which was supposed to be for academic purposes. It’s not,” Franklin said. “I grew up in college football and the NCAA, where everything started based on academics. And we’re so far past that now.
“And I’m not even sitting here saying that I necessarily agree or disagree with it. It’s just so different than the college football and the college athletics and the NCAA that I grew up with it. It started with academics, and it ended with academics, and everything else was a bonus. And it’s just changed. The model has changed.”
Shorter arrived in Happy Valley last season as one of the brightest prospects in the nation. He was considered the consensus No. 1 wideout in the country, and he was the Nittany Lions’ highest-rated offensive product since Derrick Williams in 2005. But he battled injuries as a true freshman and was limited to just three catches for 20 yards in four 2018 games.
In the spring, Franklin praised his physical attributes and his athleticism. But it was clear consistency remained an issue. He said Shorter needed to continue to improve his transition in and out of breaks, improve his blocking and release, better his focus in traffic and play up to his size.
Now, Franklin is wishing him luck on his next move.
“I will tell you this, I want nothing but success for him and his family,” Franklin said. “I want that for all of our guys. But I also know the journey is different. The journey is different for all of them. And I think sometimes guys come in and they expect the journey to play out a certain way and, when it doesn’t, it’s hard. But that’s life. That’s how life goes.”
Full transcript
Here’s everything Franklin said Wednesday night about Shorter:
(On what he can tell reporters about Justin Shorter’s status)
Yeah. I didn’t have information until yesterday. This isn’t something that usually — it’s not like injuries, where I won’t share it. Right now, he’s he’s not with us; has entered the transfer portal. Had a meeting with him yesterday, and that’s that’s kind of where we’re at.
(On how difficult this is for the coaching staff, with how quickly news travels)
Yeah, you know, I guess where I struggle with it — and I know there’s people on both sides of the fence — but I do believe strongly that college athletics, and athletics probably in general but specifically college athletics, I felt like really taught adversity and battling through things. And that’s — this has changed that dynamic. And I think the best stories to me are the guys that have battled through it.
You know, I think about (former tight end) Mike Gesicki. You know, if we had the transfer portal when Mike Gesicki was here, would it have played out the way it did, which he had a really tough year? He battled through it, came back, had an unbelievable year and just saw the other day caught a touchdown pass. Miami Dolphins, graduated, awesome. You know, before my time, I think about (former wideout) Allen Robinson. Allen Robinson had three catches his first year; I think he had 87 or something the next year and 93 the year after that. So I get both perspectives. But the problem is, is it doesn’t really go the way it’s played out. And I’m not talking specific to Justin. I’m talking big picture now. Guys are being recruited; that’s happening. And it’s and it’s not supposed to happen.
The other thing I would say is this all started with the graduate transfer (rule), which was supposed to be for academic purposes. It’s not. I grew up in college football and the NCAA, where everything started based on academics. And we’re so far past that now. You know, and I’m not even sitting here saying that I necessarily agree or disagree with it. It’s just so different than the college football and the college athletics and the NCAA that I grew up with. It was It started with academics and it ended with academics, and everything else was a bonus. And it’s just changed. The model has changed.
So I will tell you this, I want nothing but success for him and his and his family. I want that for all of our guys. But I also know the journey is different. The journey is different for all of them. And I think sometimes guys come in and they expect the journey to play out a certain way and when it doesn’t, it’s hard. But that’s that’s life. That’s how that’s how life goes.
(On clarifying whether Justin Shorter can still choose to return)
That’s the other thing that’s probably — it’s a little bit, I think, problematic with the transfer portal is everybody can handle it differently. So the problem is you say, well, this school is handling it this way and this school’s handling it that way. In my opinion, it should be consistent across the board so there is no gray area and confusion.
But we have a very clear protocol that we have now that after that first wave (of transfers). Got together with the Leadership Council and the coaches and really had a discussion about what we think is fair for the players, and what we think is fair for the program. And be very clear on the front end, everybody knows what that is. And then everybody can determine how they want to, you know, kind of work within that system. So everybody clearly understands it.
(On what that system is)
Yeah, again, it’s hard for me to sit here unless I go through our policy in detail; there’s a lot of points to it. And, also, it’s not like a black and white deal. Every situation is different based on how they leave, how they communicate, why they’re leaving. There’s there’s a lot of factors that go into it.
This story was originally published November 27, 2019 at 7:47 PM.
