Penn State Coach Franklin on Year 2 expectations and players tackling trees

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WPVI) -- With one year under his belt as the head coach at Penn State, James Franklin sat down with me as part of the final leg of his media caravan Tuesday.

After a 7-6 season and a berth in the Pinstripe Bowl, he knows expectations will be up especially since sanctions are down.

The Nittany Lions will have around 80 scholarship players after making due last year with just 45.

"I think at Penn State, [expectations] are always up. It's funny, everybody talked about the sanctions all off-season and then soon as the season starts at Penn State, they expect you to win the National Championship," Franklin said.

"Year 2, you know what to expect. I got a better feel for Penn State. I got a better feel for the community. I got a better feel for our players."

Especially Anthony Zettel who three days ago had teammate Jordan Dudas post a video on Instagram as he tackled a tree.

Franklin's initial thoughts?

"Not real happy to see our starting All-American defensive tackle running full speed into a pretty good size tree," Franklin said.

"Obviously, he's a smart guy and I think he found one that was significantly rotted out, but either way it doesn't make you feel good seeing your starting defensive tackle running full speed and slamming his shoulder into a tree. Luckily, the tree gave more than he did. But it went viral. He had fun with it. He said, 'Coach, I didn't expect it to blow up like that.' I said, 'Yes, you did.'"

Like the tree, the coach just hopes his team can tackle the crazy tough Big 10 this season and that he can plant roots at Penn State that grow for years to come.