A former Penn State letterman is pointing the finger squarely at the top of the program after another rough night for the Nittany Lions.
During Penn State’s 34-13 loss at Northwestern on Friday night, former defensive lineman Fred Hansard took to social media and didn’t hold back. Hansard, who played for James Franklin from 2017-2021, said the issue runs deeper than what’s happening on the field.
“Don’t you ever think one man can’t ruin an entire football problem…we’re experiencing it firsthand with Pat Kraft! #PennState”
Hansard’s criticism centered on the athletic director, who made the call to fire Franklin after a 3-3 start last season. That decision set off a coaching search that eventually ended with Iowa State’s Matt Campbell. Campbell and his staff then brought most of this roster to Penn State, which is why Hansard’s frustration landed where it did.
He kept going from there.
“Is the Big 12 conference really that soft?” Hansard wrote, “lol” #PennState
Is the Big 12 conference really that soft? lol #PennState
- Fred Hansard (@Fred_Hansard53) October 3, 2026
That post was a clear shot at Campbell’s Big 12 background and the 24 players he brought with him from Iowa State.
Hansard also posted, “I’m definitely grabbing a 12 pack of Yuenglings at 9am sharp tomorrow morning…”
I’m definitely grabbing a 12 pack of Yuenglings at 9am sharp tomorrow morning..
- Fred Hansard (@Fred_Hansard53) October 3, 2026
And he wasn’t done.
“Bob Chesney was right there smh….#PennState
Let’s talk more about that…
For a stretch, Chesney looked like a real possibility for Penn State. The Pennsylvania native kept James Madison rolling after Curt Cignetti left and had become one of the hotter names in the coaching carousel.
But the search took another turn: Chesney ended up at UCLA, Penn State struck out on BYU’s Kalani Sitake, and Campbell got the job. Chesney and UCLA are now 4-0 and sitting in the top 25.
Penn State, meanwhile, is 3-2 and on the verge of dropping out of the coaches poll after already being removed from the AP last weekend.
Maybe it’s too soon to spend too much time on what could have been. But after a three-touchdown loss to Northwestern, the questions are already piling up about how the program got here.
In Other News...
Penn State Fans Have Another Saquon Barkley Reason To Be Miserable
Saquon Barkleys latest exit from a game with the Rams was the kind of sight that makes Penn State fans wince, because it came with an apparent hamstring injury and no return to action after the first quarter. For a player whose career has already included a major ACL tear in 2020, any lower-body issue carries extra weight, especially when it involves a part of the body that can linger for weeks before a running back is truly back to full speed.
For Penn State, the timing only adds to the unease. The Nittany Lions are already staring at a difficult stretch ahead with USC and Michigan on the schedule, and recent losses have left the seasons outlook cloudy. Losing even the conversation around one of the programs most recognizable stars to another injury scare is the sort of development that keeps the mood around State College uneasy, even before the next kickoff arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Already Has A Problem Fans Didn't Expect
Penn States early-season picture has changed fast, and not in the way fans expected when a new era began under Matt Campbell. By Week 5, the Nittany Lions were already dealing with back-to-back losses, a jarring turn for a program that entered the fall with far more optimism than this.
The setback lands in a week packed with head-turning college football moments elsewhere, from South Carolinas collapse against Kentucky to Michigans offensive trouble after losing to Iowa. Even the broader sport has been in motion, with Foxs Big Noon Kickoff and Barstool Sports parting ways, but for Penn State the focus is closer to home now, where the pressure is already building and the questions around this team are starting to pile up. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Suddenly Has A Credibility Problem Fans Can't Ignore
Penn States rough stretch has turned what looked like a promising season into a much tougher sell. The 34-13 loss to Northwestern sent the Nittany Lions out of the Coaches Poll entirely, a sharp fall for a program that opened the year ranked and expected to stay in the national picture under new coach Matt Campbell.
The schedule does not offer much time to linger on the setback. USC and Michigan are next, and those matchups will give Penn State a chance to reestablish itself against high-profile opponents and climb back toward the top 25, but only if the Nittany Lions start looking like a different team than the one that just slipped against Northwestern. [Read more 🡒]