After hinting that a deal was close in his post-Rutgers press conference, James Franklin and Penn State have agreed to a new contract to keep the head coach in Happy Valley. The new contract was approved this afternoon by Penn State Board of Trustees Committee on Compensation. Terms of the contract were not immediately available, but we do know that the contract will run through the 2025 season.

Franklin arrived in January of 2014, the height of the NCAA sanction impact, and guided the Nittany Lions to back-to-back 7-6 seasons in his first two years. The breakout came the following year when Penn State rattled off nine consecutive wins to close the regular season and for the school's first Big Ten title Rose Bowl berth in eight years. That season marked the first of three 10-plus win seasons out of the past four years, the first such run since 1993-96. Since his hiring, Franklin is 55-23, including 41-11 in the last four seasons. That four-year mark is among the best in the nation.

Franklin's previous contract, agreed to prior to the 2017 season, was worth $32 million over the 2017-22 seasons, and reportedly included larger commitments to continued facilities upgrades and a larger pool for assistant coaching salaries. His original deal, which was replaced by the 2017 agreement paid out $25.5 million over the 2014-2019 seasons.