Matt Campbell Had A Hilarious Response When A Reporter Joked About James Franklin's Awkward Press Conference Yesterday

Justin Casterline. Getty Images.

I'm sure by now you guys have all seen the clip from James Franklin's press conference yesterday. But if you haven't, here it is. And if your name is Michael, strap yourself in. 

Word on the street is that he's still trying to get Michael's attention 24 hours later. 

This video took the internet by surprise yesterday, but anybody who's followed Franklin's career has known him to be this way forever. Shit, he was our head coach at Penn State for over a decade, so I've seen him do this shtick dozens of times. He's always tried to have a personal greeting with every reporter who asks a question, and if one of them tries to bypass that, Franklin will hold up the entire press conference until there's a proper exchange. Some find it charming, others think it's highly cringe. Just kinda depends on your perspective I guess. 

He's also been known to ask reporters about their favorite Thanksgiving foods, so don't be shocked if there's a viral clip that comes out of that in late November, too. 

The reporters on the Penn State beat -- for better or worse -- have been conditioned to this type of behavior from Franklin. So when Matt Campbell took the podium for his weekly press conference today, the first question he was asked started off with a reference to the "Hey Michael" video. Campbell brushed off the joke, but it was a very funny moment in the room. 

And listen, I am not a guy who hates James Franklin. I fought tooth and nail to defend him for years when he was at Penn State, until he squandered opportunity after opportunity and it became abundantly clear that he was no longer the guy to lead the program. But I've said it before, I wish him nothing but the best at Virginia Tech. 

However, there are certain quirks and characteristics of his that still linger in the minds of Penn State football fans, alums, reporters, etc. Those traits were not well-received by a large portion of the Penn State community, and even though this "Hey Michael" clip is such a trivial moment in the grand scheme of things, it serves as prime evidence that he hasn't abandoned those traits AT ALL. He's still the same guy doing the same things. At the podium. In the locker room. On the sidelines. At least he's no longer posting the "1-0" tweets every Sunday. 

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His formulaic nature wore thin at Penn State, but we'll see how it plays long-term at Virginia Tech. All I know is that it's so refreshing to see the way Matt Campbell has gone about his business so far, and I hope it results in some big time success for this Penn State football team.