Scott Frost gives cold-blooded back-handed compliment to James Franklin, Penn State

To James Franklin’s credit, Penn State is the best 0-4 team in the nation.

Penn State was the preseason No. 7 team in the nation. Entering mid-November, Penn State is still seeking its first win of the season that is effectively over and James Franklin’s seat gets hotter.

Franklin’s team had aspirations of competing with Ohio State for a Big Ten championship and making the College Football Playoff for the first time.

Now, they’re just hoping to get a win to stop the bleeding.

That first win of the season looked like it would be possible against winless Nebraska who started redshirt freshman Luke McCaffrey at quarterback for the first time. The bitter sting of that not being a reality slapped Nittany Lions players and coaches in the face with the unrelenting bitterness of a December breeze.

Penn State fell down early, trailing the Huskers 24-3 less than five minutes into the second quarter and went to the locker room down 26-7 at halftime. There was a glimmer of hope in the second half when Sean Clifford and the Nittany Lions came within a score but after one inexcusable play call in the red zone after another, Penn State fell to 0-4 and left to wonder what they’ll be thankful for at Thanksgiving.

Scott Frost delivered a back-handed compliment to James Franklin, Penn State

After the game, Nebraska head coach Scott Frost told the media that Penn State was the best team he’s ever seen with their record. That won’t help Franklin sleep any better tonight. The winning team giving the losing team a lot of credit doesn’t result in bottles being popped and coaches lifted in the air in chairs like you’ll see at Jewish weddings.

It just makes Franklin and Penn State feel even worse. It’s the ultimate back-handed compliment. Frost means well with his comments but it won’t sit well with Penn State who has to contend with Iowa next week after the Hawkeyes just smoked Minnesota on Friday and has won their last two games by a combined score of 84-14 after losing their first two games by a combined five points.

But after that, they travel to Ann Arbor to take on Jim Harbaugh‘s Michigan Wolverines who would be the biggest disappointment in the Big Ten if not for Penn State owning that distinction.

For Penn State, it may get worse before it gets better. Even Rutgers isn’t a guaranteed win this year.

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