Jeff Zimmerman grew up and still is a die-hard Notre Dame fan.
Saturday, he became a Penn State fan, too.
A Schuylkill Haven native, Zimmerman is one of several former Schuylkill County players who were teammates of new Penn State coach James Franklin when he was a standout quarterback at East Stroudsburg University in the 1990s.
Now a ninth-grade biology and marine science teacher at Stroudsburg High School, Zimmerman remembers Franklin as a good leader and knew he would become a successful college coach.
"I remember playing against him in spring camp and summer camp," said Zimmerman, who was a middle linebacker for the Warriors from 1993-96. "He was a good leader, more like a Randall Cunningham type of quarterback.
"He was very good, very elusive. He had good field awareness and he knew where everybody was all the time. He was a true leader.
"I remember looking up to him. He made me a better person and a better player."
Franklin was a three-year letterwinner at East Stroudsburg after a standout career at Neshaminy High School. He saw some action as a sophomore in 1992 before starting every game in the 1993 and 1994 seasons.
Nativity graduate Paul Bandholz, North Schuylkill's John Bozena and Jim Thorpe's Sam Bonner - the current Tamaqua High coach - were seniors when Franklin broke into the lineup in 1992.
"He was a good athlete, a talented young kid," said Bonner, who was a defensive lineman. "He's an enthusiastic, young coach. He'll do well (at Penn State)."
Franklin threw for 1,912 yards and 19 touchdowns in 1993 as a junior at East Stroudsburg, then completed 187-of-364 passes for 2,586 yards and 14 touchdowns as a senior in 1994.
One of his backfield mates in those two seasons was Schuylkill Haven graduate Jason Killian.
Killian, who broke the Pennsylvania high school record with 48 touchdowns in leading the Hurricanes to the 1991 PIAA Class A state championship, transferred to East Stroudsburg after a brief stint at Penn State.
Killian was a running back with the Warriors for the two seasons Franklin was the quarterback. Killian rushed for 375 yards and six TDs as a freshman and 559 yards and five scores as a sophomore before moving to wide receiver, where he earned All-PSAC and All-ECAC first-team honors as a senior in 1996 with 50 catches for 1,010 yards and 11 touchdowns.
He remembers Franklin as a fiery leader with good command of the huddle.
"When you look back on it, the first time you met him, when you walked on the field with him ... he demanded a lot of everyone else, but he expected a lot more of himself," said Killian, 40, who now lives in Pine Grove and works for Pioneer Pole Buildings.
Killian said he remembers catching a 60-yard touchdown pass from Franklin in a 1994 game at Springfield.
"He was a pretty solid player, but his leadership skills were great," Killian said. "You watch him now as he coaches, and you can see some of his playing skills in his coaching."
Killian, who is a USC fan, and Zimmerman both said they've followed Franklin's career as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Packers and at Maryland, and later as the head coach at Vanderbilt.
Zimmerman, who was a three-year starter at ESU and compiled 149 career tackles, was the head freshman coach at Stroudsburg for "7-8 years" and would often run into Franklin at coaching clinics.
"He worked hard at it," Zimmerman said of Franklin. Zimmerman currently resides in Easton with his wife Allison and two children, Mason, 11, and Makenna, 9.
"He would always have a clipboard in his hand, always taking notes," Zimmerman continued. "He would always get to meetings on time, he was very thorough.
"I'd talk to him, and as old teammates we'd share battle stories."
Zimmerman was the 1993 Schuylkill County football scholar-athlete and his father, also named Jeff, played at Notre Dame. He's looking forward to watching Franklin coach the Nittany Lions.
"I'm not a Penn State fan, but I will be now," Zimmerman said. "I have to root for him.
"I'm a die hard Notre Dame fan, but since Penn State and Notre Dame don't play each other anymore, I have to root for Penn State, too."