At his Week 7 press conference last season, Maryland coach Mike Locksley closed his remarks with a thought concerning seismic news about a long time rival.
“I mean, it’s part of the game. I’ve texted with James. It’s the landscape we’re in. Is it surprising? It’s surprising,” Locksley said two days after Penn State upended the college football world and fired coach James Franklin after a 3-3 start last Oct. 12. “Because we learned very quickly that you’re only as good as the last game you played and the last game you’ve won. And as coaches, I think we all understand that.”
There are very few coaches in the sport who understand each other as intimately as Locksley and Franklin, whose career trajectories have been closely intertwined for most of this century.
“I’ve known, obviously, Locks for a long time,” Franklin said Monday. “Got a ton of respect for him and what he’s been able to do his entire career.”
Saturday night, a new and previously unexpected chapter in their relationship will be written.
“He was a great friend. Still is a guy that I call a friend,” Locksley said Tuesday. “We’ve worked together, we know each other really well, know [each other’s] families. There’s no doubt from a personal level. But … the game here will have nothing to do with the personal.”
As much as Locksley has tried to downplay it, the circumstances and statistics still loom over their upcoming encounter.
Franklin first arrived in College Park in 2000, hired by then-coach Ron Vanderlinden to lead the receivers, while Locksley was already on staff as the recruiting coordinator and running backs coach. Both carried over when Vanderlinden was fired and former Terrapins offensive lineman Ralph Friedgen began his now-legendary Maryland coaching tenure.
“We did some really special things together under Coach Friedgen,” Locksley said. “I know we both both had to do a lot. I learned a lot of ball. Ralph coming in as an offensive coach and the structure in which he implemented, he forced — I know he forced me — to grow as a coach really quickly.”
Unsurprisingly, Franklin’s memories working for Friedgen nearly mirrored Locksley’s.
“That’s probably where I grew the most as a coach. My time with Ralph Friedgen, one of the better coaches I’ve ever been around, that was a huge adjustment,” Franklin said. “I learned a ton of ball in a short period of time. Not only offense, but just also kind of how to run a program — a tough disciplined hard-nosed program — and we won a bunch of games and had a ton of success.”
At the end of his second Maryland stint from 2008-10, Franklin left a coach-in-waiting arrangement to succeed Friedgen, jumping instead to the top job at Vanderbilt. Four years later, he’d arrive at Penn State, becoming a thorn in side of the Terrapins right as Maryland made its switch to the Big Ten.
“There’s a there’s a ton of history there from when I was there,” Franklin said. “But no, I’m fortunate and blessed to be the head coach of Virginia Tech and don’t take that for granted. And I’m not sure if I would be here if if my path was different.”
Their most recent on-field meeting has colored much of this week’s discourse.
Franklin’s Nittany Lions beat Locksley’s Terrapins 44-7 on Nov. 30, 2024. Up 38-7 in the final minute, Penn State drove down the field and scored a touchdown as time expired. Locksley immediately took umbrage, telling Franklin as they shook hands the move was “bulls—-.” “If that’s what you think, then that’s fine,” Franklin yelled, telling reporters that his reserves were playing against Maryland’s starters late in the game, and “those guys deserve to play football.”
“Obviously, those things have happened. [It] will have no bearing on the game,” Locksley said. “We’ve got to make the shell a hard place to play, and not because of anything personal. Because as I said, this won’t be about James. This won’t be about Locks. This will be about the players on the field.”
Locksley has chosen not to lean into any perceived rivalry between the Terrapins and Hokies or him and his friend. Perhaps he should: Franklin is 6-1 in his career against Locksley and 9-2 against Maryland. Locksley’s only win over Franklin came at Penn State, 35-19, during the pandemic-affected season of 2020.
“It’s our first home game against a Power Four opponent. That’s the upgrade,” Locksley said. Last home game was against an FCS opponent. I think for us, more we keep it about the work on the field, the more we keep it about the upgrade and who we play, that’s the only thing that’s really going to be important for us.”
The upgrade brings increased attention and scrutiny. Maryland has announced SECU Stadium is sold out for the 7:30 p.m. kickoff, giving Locksley, not Franklin, a head start on the best chance he may ever have to rewrite their rivalry.
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