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College football season this year is different. How so? It's not just the breakout success of Indiana's

Hoosiers and the crushing disappointment of Pim State, although both are noteworthy development.

It's the golden parachutes being doled out to bad coaches from public schools.

Hello and welcome to USA Today's The Excert. Today is Tuesday, November 11, 2025.

Some of the biggest parachutes we've seen so far this year include Penn State's payout to coach James Franklin to the tune of $49 million.

We also have another big payout to Brian Kelly at LSU.

So far across the country, we're looking at millions in go-away payments for failing college football coaches from public colleges,

colleges where many students continue to take on exorbitant debt to earn a degree.

Is this okay?

Here to help me dig into all of it is USA Today's Senior National College Football Writer, Matt Hayes, and USA Today's Sports Project reporter, Steve Burke

Berk Berkowitz. Matt and Burke, thank you for hopping on.

Thanks for having us on. Thanks for having us. Steve, let's start with these two big payouts.

Is the Brian Kelly payout the largest payout for a failing college football coach ever?

No, actually, there's one that's larger.

It was about the Texas A&M paid to Jimbo Fisher several years ago, which was roughly $75 to $77 million.

Matt, just for kicks, I wanted to see how Franklin's $49 million package might impact Penn

States' undergraduate population with just over $48,000 right now.

If it was divvied out among the students instead of all going to James Franklin, it would

net $1,000 per student.

Are there ethical lines being crossed here?

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