Three years ago, James Franklin made it clear that change needed to happen when it came to the paucity of Black head coaches in major college football and the NFL.
Change is happening.
The NFL now has nine Black head coaches compared to one, Mike Tomlin, in February 2022.
Major college football now has 16 out of 134 teams in the FBS, compared to 14 out of 130 three years ago.
“I know some people will say that’s not a huge increase, but it is an increase,” Franklin said Saturday.
Now Penn State’s Franklin or Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman is on the brink of making history. One of them will become the first Black coach to lead his team into college football’s national championship game after their meeting in Thursday’s Orange Bowl.
“It’s a great honor to be even mentioned, to be in this position,” Freeman, 38, said. “It’s a reminder that you are a representation for so many others that look like you. I don’t take that for granted.
“It’s great because even the guys in our program, my own kids, can understand, ‘Don’t put a ceiling on what you can be and what you can do.’ ”
The 52-year-old Franklin climbed the coaching ladder one rung at a time, starting as a graduate assistant at Kutztown after his outstanding playing career at East Stroudsburg. He made eight more stops along the way before becoming head coach at Vanderbilt in 2011.
One of those was Kansas State, where he was offensive coordinator for Ron Prince, one of six black head coaches in the sport then in 2007.
When Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts and Lovie Smith of the Chicago Bears met in Super Bowl XLI that year, they made history as the first Black head coaches in professional football’s biggest game.
“This (the Orange Bowl matchup between him and Freeman) makes me think of that,” Franklin said. “Dungy obviously became the first black head coach to win a Super Bowl, which was significant.
“I remember thinking how significant that was for young coaches coming up in the profession to see those guys in that role. At that time there were a lot of conversations on whether it will impact the profession. Would it impact opportunities – earned opportunities – for guys?”
Progress has been slow, but opportunities are increasing. More coordinators in the NFL and college are Black. More team executives are Black.
Yet despite about 55% of the players in the FBS being Black, only 11.9% of the schools have Black head coaches.
Franklin has set an example with his staff hirings. Five of his 10 full-time assistant coaches are Black: Ja’Juan Seider, Marques Hagans, Deion Barnes, Anthony Poindexter and Terry Smith.
Southern Miss coach Charles Huff was on his staff at Vanderbilt and Penn State, and so was Josh Gattis, who was recently fired as Maryland offensive coordinator.
Four of Freeman’s 10 assistants at Notre Dame are Black.
“I want to be a representation and I am a representation, but that’s not enough,” Freeman said. “If you want to truly help some people, then you have to be willing to make decisions and actions that truly help people.”
With Franklin and Freeman squaring off in the national semifinals and one of them coaching in the title game, the increased visibility can inspire younger, qualified Black coaches and perhaps create opportunities for them.
“I hope so,” Franklin said. “At the end of the day, you just want an opportunity and you want to be able to earn it through your work with your actions. We’ll see. I take a lot of pride in it.
“For me to sit here and say that it’s not important or that it’s not significant would not be accurate. But at the end of the day, we have to find a way to beat a really good football team that’s well-coached.”