Penn State’s football program is still trying to wrap its head around the firing of James Franklin, and it has left some of its players with an “overwhelming sense of guilt” over how their 2025 season has transpired.

Franklin was dismissed over the weekend after the Nittany Lions lost their third consecutive game — a 22-21 home defeat at the hands of Northwestern — ending his 12-year run in Happy Valley.

Speaking for the first time since, Penn State captain Nick Dawkins said Tuesday that he was in “disbelief” when he heard about Franklin. He described a sense of responsibility that the team felt for the coach being let go. 

“Ultimately, for us, at least as players, it’s just an overwhelming sense of guilt,” Dawkins told reporters during a virtual news conference. “Like, we got our coach fired. We didn’t play well enough. We didn’t do our job good enough, and now he doesn’t have a job anymore.

“At this point, the grittiness, the toughness, yes, everything like that. But I think it’s playing for a purpose, playing for each other … Maybe it’s a new sense of ownership, of responsibility and accountability for what we’ve done in the past and what we have to do now.”

The Nittany Lions’ season took a hard turn after the first three weeks when they beat Nevada, FIU and Villanova. 

Penn State suffered a heartbreaking loss to Oregon on Sept. 27 on national television, then fell to a then-winless UCLA team and most recently, Northwestern. 

Penn State was favored going into the Big Ten showdown with the Wildcats by more than three touchdowns. Franklin found himself having to take “full responsibility” for the shocking loss. 

The Nittany Lions began the year as the preseason No. 2 after making it to the College Football Playoff semifinals against Notre Dame. 

Penn State will have another crucial Big Ten game on Saturday when it faces Iowa. Terry Smith is set to make his interim head coaching debut.