This is something you don’t see every day.
Cal announced Friday afternoon that Tony Franklin has resigned as the offensive coordinator of the Golden Bears. Additionally, the football program confirmed that Franklin resigned so that he could take the same position at Middle Tennessee State.
The Blue Raiders subsequently confirmed in its own release that, in addition to his coordinating duties, Franklin would also serve as quarterbacks coach. Franklin, who was MTSU’s coordinator in 2009, replaces Buster Faulkner, who left for the same job at Arkansas State earlier this month.
“As soon as we had the opening, Tony and I had conversations and he expressed his interest in coming to Middle Tennessee so we immediately started figuring out a way to make it work,” said head coach Rick Stockstill in a statement. “I am extremely excited about working with Tony again. He did a great job here the last time and I know our players will love playing for him.
“I know our offensive players will be eager to learn from Tony because he is one of the top three or four offensive coordinators in the business with a proven track record. Everywhere he has coached, his offenses have been one of the most productive in the country and I can’t wait for him to get here and start putting his plan into place.”
Franklin had spent the past three seasons as the coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Bears. In 2015, he added running backs coach as part of his responsibilities.
In 2015, Cal set school records for passing yardage (4,892), passing yards per game (376.3 ypg), passing touchdowns (44), total offense (6,879), total yards per game (529.2 ypg), total touchdowns (63), scoring offense (37.9 ppg, modern-era record), first downs (341) and first downs passing (201). Quarterback Jared Goff, responsible for most of those record-breaking statistics, decided to leave early for the NFL.
“I appreciate all of the contributions that Tony has made over the last three seasons to make our football program successful and all that he has accomplished throughout his career including the last six years we have spent working together at Cal and Louisiana Tech,” Cal head coach Sonny Dykes said. “I will miss him both as a colleague and a friend, but at this point in his career he has decided that this is the best move for him and his family. I respect and honor that wholeheartedly, and I wish both Tony and his family nothing but the best.”
“I am also extremely confident and excited that we will hire an offensive coordinator that will help us continue to grow upon our recent success and the foundation that Tony and all of our coaches have built at Cal. We have a terrific foundation in place now, and we will embrace the opportunity to hire an outstanding offensive coordinator that will help us continue to have success as a team and be one of the top offenses in college football.”
In addition to Cal and MTSU, Franklin has also been the coordinator at Kentucky (2000), Troy (2006-07), Auburn (2008) and Louisiana Tech (2010-12). Franklin had spent the last six seasons on Dykes-led staffs.