The act of purchasing a newspaper ad that will be seen by fans of a player or coach’s former team has become a bit of a custom. It largely depends on the role that figure played in the landscape of the local sports scene. Few would argue the impact James Franklin had at Vanderbilt since joining the program to serve as head coach.
Franklin had an advertisement run in today’s issue of The Tennessean. In it was a simple photo of Franklin and a brief message of thanks to Vanderbilt and their fans.
“Thank you Vanderbilt,” Franklin’s message reads. “It was a wonderful experience. I am forever grateful. Anchor down.”
According to The Tennessean, it was not Franklin who paid for the thank-you message. In fact it was Penn State that picked up the tab for the advertisement. However, Penn State confirmed Franklin requested the ad be placed and will pay for the advertisement once the invoice is received.James Franklin asked #PennState staff to place Thank You ad in The Tennessean and he will pay the invoice when it arrives.
— Jeff Nelson (@GoPSUJeff) January 17, 2014Follow @KevinOnCFB