Wyoming Valley West to hold registration for school year

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New York Performing Arts Academy to hold auditions in Wilkes-Barre Aug. 27

<p>It was halftime of the fifth game of the 2016 season, and James Franklin heard the boos.</p><p>The Penn State coach heard the chants, too. The ones from the Beaver Stadium crowd that called for him to be fired as the Nittany Lions headed to the locker room trailing Minnesota last October, facing a possible 2-3 start with an 0-2 record in the Big Ten.</p><p>&#8220;Minnesota, the fans (were) telling me exactly how they felt in that game,&#8221; Franklin said earlier this month.</p><p>Franklin and the Lions won that game in overtime. And they didn&#8217;t lose again for the rest of the regular season.</p><p>Some 10 months later, Franklin is leading the reigning Big Ten champs into the 2017 season with a top-10 preseason ranking. And for his efforts, he has a new contract to go along with that.</p><p>Penn State&#8217;s Committee on Compensation unanimously approved an extension for Franklin on Friday morning. The new contract runs through the 2022 season and pays Franklin an average of $5.33 million annually in guaranteed money. Including retention bonuses made payable on Dec. 31 of each year, that number jumps to an annual average of $5.78 million.</p><p>That figure would make him the fourth highest-paid coach in the country behind only Michigan&#8217;s Jim Harbaugh, Alabama&#8217;s Nick Saban and Ohio State&#8217;s Urban Meyer.</p><p>&#8220;My family and I are very thankful to be a part of the Penn State community,&#8221; Franklin said in a school release. &#8220;I am pleased with the progress our program has made in the community, in the classroom and on the field. I look forward to diligently working with President (Eric) Barron and Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour on implementing a plan that puts our university and our student-athletes in the best position to compete on the field and in life.&#8221;</p><p>Franklin was halfway through the original six-year deal that he signed when he was hired away from Vanderbilt in January 2014. His extension puts him back at that same six-year term.</p><p>Such early extensions are common in major college football to keep up with recruiting, the lifeblood of any program. Top high school prospects and their families want to be reassured that the coach they are committing to has the stability to be there throughout their four or five years at the college.</p><p>When negotiations for Franklin and agent Trace Armstrong first began roughly a year ago, Penn State was still treading water as a program.</p><p>Fighting the tide of NCAA sanctions, Franklin led the Lions to back-to-back 7-6 seasons before breaking through last fall with a wholly surprising 11-3 campaign that ended in the Rose Bowl.</p><p>Naturally, that success gave Franklin&#8217;s camp some leverage. Though there was little doubt a deal would be completed eventually, the process took longer than expected.</p><p>Starting this season, he will receive $4.3 million in guaranteed compensation, a figure that will rise to $6.25 million in 2022. He will also be eligible for bonuses of up to $1 million per year for team and individual success.</p><p>The annual retention bonus will be $300,000 through 2020 before rising to $500,000 in 2021 and $1 million in 2022.</p><p>Franklin&#8217;s amended buyout clause should he leave Penn State for another job during the contract is $2 million in 2017 and $1 million in each subsequent year.</p><p>&#8220;James and his staff have done an exceptional job with our football student-athletes and in all aspects of the football program,&#8221; Barbour said in a statement. &#8220;His values are Penn State&#8217;s values and they resonate throughout every member of the organization and team he has built.</p><p>&#8220;James is a tremendous leader of young men, motivating them to extend their reach and impact far beyond what they might have thought possible on the field, in the classroom and community. We are excited about continuing to work together to strive to make a lifetime of impact, win championships and celebrate many successes on and off the field along the way.&#8221;</p><p>According to USA Today&#8217;s coaches salary database, Franklin was the 10th highest-paid coach in college football for the 2016 season, tied with Iowa&#8217;s Kirk Ferentz at $4.5 million annually.</p><p>Franklin is 25-15 in three seasons at Penn State, putting his head coaching career record at 49-30, including three seasons at Vanderbilt &#8212; arguably the most successful stretch in the Commodores&#8217; downtrodden history in the sport.</p><p>With the Lions still fighting roster attrition from the sanctions, Franklin and his coaching staff managed to get the program firmly back onto the national radar last season, narrowly missing a berth in the College Football Playoff.</p><p>Even Penn State&#8217;s rivals have a strong grasp on how tough of an accomplishment that was.</p><p>&#8220;Should they have belonged in that playoff?&#8221; Meyer told ESPN on Thursday. &#8220;Absolutely.&#8221;</p><p>Meyer and the Buckeyes, of course, were one of the four teams selected for the bracket ahead of the Lions. Penn State had the head-to-head win and the conference title, but the Lions also had two losses to Ohio State&#8217;s one.</p><p>Expectations for Franklin and the Lions will be much higher this season as they look to take another run at the Playoff, this time with the lofty ranking of No. 6 in the preseason coaches poll.</p><p>The coach, at least, believes he and his team will be well prepared for it because of the extremes they faced a year ago.</p><p>&#8220;I actually make the argument, the way last season started really, really helped me at the end of the year,&#8221; Franklin said. &#8220;To say, &#8216;Listen &#8212; you can&#8217;t listen to the praise now. No different than I didn&#8217;t want you to talk about the criticism, I didn&#8217;t want you to listen to the criticism early on.&#8217;</p><p>&#8220;That, I think, in a lot of ways helped me help the program at the end of the season stay level and stay consistent and not get caught up in the emotions and the highs and the lows.</p><p>&#8220;So I&#8217;m a big believer that you savor all of life&#8217;s experiences. The only way you really can appreciate and recognize the good is if you&#8217;ve been through the adversity and the challenges.&#8221;</p><p style="margin: 12px auto 6px auto; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none; display: block;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/document/356634934/James-Franklin-Contract-Terms-2017#from_embed" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View James Franklin Contract Terms 2017 on Scribd">James Franklin Contract Terms 2017</a> by <a href="&#8221;https:/www.scribd.com/user/328672124/dlevarse#from_embed&#8221;" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View dlevarse">dlevarse</a> on Scribd</p><p><iframe id="doc_23358" class="scribd_iframe_embed" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/356634934/content?start_page=1&amp;view_mode=scroll&amp;access_key=key-UkmHnBRi4BWwYGO2OeFm&amp;show_recommendations=true" height="600" width="100%" data-auto-height="false" data-aspect-ratio="0.7729220222793488"></iframe></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Penn State coach James Franklin directs his team during NCAA college football practice Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017, in State College, Pa. (Joe Hermitt/PennLive.com via AP)</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/web1_AP172290030710762017818114331746-4.jpg</photo0><caption0>Penn State coach James Franklin directs his team during NCAA college football practice Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017, in State College, Pa. (Joe Hermitt/PennLive.com via AP)</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Derek Levarse</p><p>dlevarse@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Penn State approves contract extension for James Franklin