Penn State coach James Franklin stands before a game against Rutgers earlier this season. TIM WEIGHT FILE PHOTO

Is this a make-or-break year for James Franklin?

With a contract through 2031, and a team capable of winning double-digit games this fall, you wouldn’t think so.

But last week’s verdict in a lawsuit that awarded a fired Penn State team doctor $5.25 million in damages may have dealt Franklin a blow that hangs over him.

(Unless, of course, he beats Ohio State, and good luck with that.)

Franklin and Penn State were dismissed as defendants in the suit in 2020 due to the statute of limitations, and Franklin was not called to testify.

But his alleged actions were at the center of the case.

Franklin was accused by Dr. Scott Lynch for meddling into medical decisions before Lynch was relieved of his duties as the Nittany Lions’ orthopedic surgeon and director of sports medicine in 2019.

Lynch and two other members of Penn State’s medical team at the time — Dr. Peter Seidenberg, the team’s primary care physician, and former head trainer Tim Bream — testified that Franklin pressured the medical staff to release players and tried to influence decisions.

Penn State Health sided with Franklin and Sandy Barbour, who was then PSU’s athletic director, and fired Lynch.

The jury disagreed.

Penn State Health said it was “extremely disappointed” in the decision and is considering an appeal.

Franklin has said and is likely to say nothing, and it would be absolutely stunning if Penn State Health follows through on its mild threat to appeal.

That would drag the whole case up again and damage the reputations of Franklin and Penn State even further.

Once it gets to court, even more unflattering information could come out. 

Such as when Franklin allegedly tried to pull the scholarship of a player who attempted suicide in 2017. Or that he hung up on Lynch during an attempted conversation about an injury to Rob Windsor, who testified that he felt pressured to play sooner than he was ready.

The defense rolled out two of Penn State’s biggest stars, Saquon Barkley and Trace McSorley, and neither felt Franklin exerted undue influence.

Again, though, the jury did — and that’s all the matters.

The Associated Press reported that, after Lynch’s dismissal, Penn State conducted an internal review in 2019 and found evidence of “friction” between Franklin and Lynch, a former PSU national champion wrestler.

The review could not determine whether Franklin violated NCAA bylaws or Big Ten standards by interfering with medical decisions.

Now there’s a shock because an in-house determination against Franklin could have been grounds for discipline, even a suspension.

Regardless, rest assured those who govern Penn State can be none too pleased about what is a pretty awful look.

If you thought the fourth-and-5 call against Ohio State that sealed a 27-26 come from ahead loss in 2018 or — just as bad — with a 3-0 lead in 2021 against Michigan, at home, having the holder try to hit placekicker Jordan Stout with a pass on fourth-and-goal from the 1, this is worse.

Franklin needs to stay in his own lane and concentrate on doing a better job on the field.

He’s 4-16 against the two teams he’s paid handsomely to beat — Ohio State, which is 9-1 against him with only a fluke loss via the blocked field goal, and Michigan. 

To restore some public confidence, and considering a $700 million Beaver Stadium renovation looms, it would behoove Franklin to make sure the Nittany Lions’ record in big games starts matching all the talent he keeps shipping off to the NFL.

That might — might — help take some focus off the Dauphin County Court proceedings, announced last week.

And though the $5.25 million won’t come out of his pocket — not that he can’t afford it — it’s an expensive stain on Franklin’s Penn State tenure.

Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.