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James Franklin thinks college football needs a commissioner, and I think James Franklin would be perfect.
I'm serious.
I know this will be taken as a disguised way to move on from him as the Nittany Lions' coach, but it's not.
In terms of confidence in him leading the program to a national championship, there's no question his big-game performances have frustrated the fan base, but also know this: Penn State could do a lot worse and, in many ways, Franklin would be difficult to replace.
Franklin has provided excellent recruiting, his team has represented itself well in the classroom and the community and, with a record of 88-39, he's won nearly 70% of his games (69.2).
Against the Top 10? Well, that's a different story, underscored this year when the Lions lost to Ohio State, Michigan and No. 11 Mississippi and sunk Franklin's record to 4-16 vs. the Big Ten's two best teams.
But that's been covered, and it's not like Penn State was dominating the heavyweights before Franklin arrived.
The Nits' perceived on-the-field shortcomings are nothing compared to what's happening in the college football world and really throughout college sports.
Virtually every coach in college football has lately lamented the myriad of issues engulfing the sport.
Be it the unregulated NIL (Name, Image and Likeness), the transfer portal, the December calendar, tampering, having to recruit your own roster, players opting out of bowls and a culture often described as "the wild west," coaches are begging for help from a higher power.
God and Congress -- not that they should be mentioned in the same breath -- are and should be too busy with real problems.
That leaves the conferences, college presidents, athletic directors, TV executives and coaches to figure it out.
Coaches literally were forced into negotiating with players concerning this year's bowl availability. It didn't work at Florida State, which had 25 opt-outs for the Orange Bowl matchup with Georgia and lost the game 63-3.
Penn State's effort vs. Mississippi in the Peach Bowl was compromised, too.
"I think the reality is a commissioner of college football would be valuable," Franklin said in Atlanta during a joint press conference with Lane Kiffin, who agreed.
Clearly, the bowl system needs to be restructured, and guard rails must be established to balance the rapidly changing landscape.
In addition to coordinating the Power 5 and Group of 5 conferences, playing a lead role in the upcoming College Football Playoff, the commissioner could govern the sport and also work with the NFL because "the NFL should be working with college football," Franklin said.
If such a position were to be established, there would be plenty of intriguing candidates.
So why Franklin?
He checks a ton of boxes.
Franklin has been in college football for nearly three decades, including as a head coach in the nation's strongest two conferences, the Big Ten and the SEC.
He's also coached in the ACC (while at Maryland), the Big 12 (Kansas State) and far west (Washington State and Idaho State) in addition to a one-year stint in the NFL (Green Bay).
He's an outstanding communicator -- be it with players, coaches, administrators, fans and the media -- and is an excellent spokesman who translates well across various platforms.
He understands social media and today's athlete.
As an African-American, he represents and embraces diversity.
He's photogenic and presidential, more CEO than heat-of-the-battle head coach.
As a leader, he treats people with respect and has rarely snapped at reporters or melted down in a spotlight that is constant.
Franklin wouldn't be the first to leave the sidelines or the bench to become a high-profile administrator. Dave Gavitt left Providence basketball in 1979 to become Big East commissioner and grew into one of the most powerful people in sports and carved a legacy far beyond coaching.
This is all hypothetical, of course.
Would college football ever get its act together to even have a commissioner? If so, would Franklin be interested? Who else would be?
More importantly, what does he envision for himself going forward?
If he stays in coaching, is Penn State his last stop? Does he want it to be? He's 51 and, based on his 10-year sample size, this may be the best coaching job he's going to get.
Is he good with that? Is his family?
Within minutes of Nick Saban's retirement confirmation, Franklin was mentioned as a potential successor, and while that was unlikely, there could be a trickle-down effect depending who the Crimson Tide select.
In many ways, it's realistic to think he's plateaued at Penn State, and it's fair to wonder how often, if ever, it will be much better than 10-2, though that should be good enough for a berth in the College Football Playoff.
But if he can't win the big regular-season game, what makes anybody think he's going to win two or three playoff games in a row?
That said, other than blown leads and not finishing off some winnable games in clutch moments, his work over the past 10 years has been quite impressive.
He's rebuilt a fractured fan base, with dignity, and interest remains as high as ever.
His five double-digit wins in the last eight seasons is Penn State's best stretch, at least in terms of double-digit wins, since the Lions did it five times in seven years from 1980-86 and played for the national title three times, winning twice.
With a contract through 2031, Franklin has job security but at the same time, he has to know the Nittany Lions have not matched the elite bar that he himself set and are no closer to it now than when he pledged to clear it in 2018.
And if that narrative continues, it's almost certain that he won't get another contract, let alone the overly generous one Sandy Barbour and Eric Barron extended him before they packed up.
The chance to be a visionary, one of the faces of his sport and affect long-term college football change may be appealing to him.
After all, he's the one who said the position is needed.
Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.