STATE COLLEGE — An emotional Pat Kraft said Monday he was hired as Penn State's athletics director to make "hard decisions," such as the one he made Sunday with the firing of football coach James Franklin, a move that comes less than a year after a program record 13 wins and a playoff semifinal berth.

Franklin was fired Sunday, six games into his 12th season. Penn State, which had started the season ranked No. 2, had dropped three consecutive games, including Saturday's 22-21 Homecoming loss to Northwestern. The Nittany Lions are 3-3 overall and 0-3 in the Big Ten.

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