College GameDay’s crew is officially in town for the 2019 White Out game, and its studio is also up and running after a day of construction on Thursday. GameDay crew members Kirk Herbstreit, Rece Davis, and Desmond Howard all addressed the local media on Friday morning.

Herbstreit and Davis had high praise for Franklin, who’s led the Nittany Lions to a perfect 6-0 record so far this season.

“I’m a huge fan of James Franklin,” Herbstreit said. “The way he runs his program [and] the quality people he brings into the program. To me, that’s always been a Penn State legacy — the type of people who come into the program — and he’s kept that going.”

The compliments did not stop there, as Herbstreit went on to compliment Franklin’s ability to find players that can step up after a generational talent like Saquon Barkley and a program hero in Trace McSorley left.

“Any time that you lose great players and then replace them, it tells you a lot about the job that they have done recruiting,” he added. “This is one of those programs that are trying to win 11 or 12 games every year. This is a program that can’t afford to win seven and then go back up to 10 or 11. The consistency of what he’s been able to build here is very impressive.”

The fact that players like Sean Clifford and Noah Cain are able to step into roles that were filled by Penn State legends is a testament to Franklin being able to find these players. The fact that these kinds of players are on the team is what makes them very special.

Herbstreit was not the only GameDay member who had praise for Franklin. Host Rece Davis called Franklin “a coach who doesn’t get the credit he deserves” and “one of the top coaches in the country.”

“He’s been able to replace stars and still have success,” Davis said. “You look back at his previous job, and that dude won at Vanderbilt. Now, he’s elevated [Penn State] back to the level that Penn State fans are accustomed to. He’s doing a phenomenal job.”

Davis might be onto something, as Franklin’s 75 career wins as Vanderbilt and Penn State’s head coach is three more than Jim Harbaugh’s at the collegiate level with Stanford and Michigan.

Regardless, the GameDay crew will get to see No. 7 Penn State take on No. 16 Michigan under White Out conditions at Beaver Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and the game will be broadcast on ABC.