James Franklin allegedly tried to interfere in medical decisions

If the allegations are true, it’s not a great look for James Franklin and the Penn State Nittany Lions.

At Penn State of all places, things with the football program need to be on the up and up, and two former team doctors are alleging that Franklin was far from that regarding important medical decisions they were required to make.

These allegations have come out as part of a lawsuit by former Penn State director of athletic medicine Scott Lynch, who argues he had repeated battles with Franklin over team medical decisions and that he was fired in March of 2019 because he wouldn’t “allow a coach to interfere with his medical treatment and return-to-play decisions.”

A second former team doctor, Dr. Pete Seidenberg, testified on Tuesday that Franklin had even gone as far as to interfere in the medical treatment of a player who had tried to commit suicide.

This player was receiving short-term psychiatric care from Penn State, but Seidenberg said that Franklin and former Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour tried to get him disqualified from the team — which would have created a scholarship spot for Franklin to use on another player.

“Seidenberg testified that he and Dr. Scott Lynch, then Penn State’s director of athletic medicine and orthopedic consultant to the football team, declined to follow Franklin’s and Barbour’s request. Seidenberg said it would have been the equivalent of disqualifying a player with a torn ACL before he received surgery,” John Leciew of PennLive reported.

There were, of course, allegations of squabbles over rushing injured players back onto the field and allegations that Franklin would try to push aggressive treatment approaches (surgery) over a more conservative and safe route, but the above allegation regarding the suicidal player is concerning if true.

If you are in the United States and you or a loved one have contemplated suicide, call the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to connect with a trained counselor.