James Franklin likes Phil Trautwein’s story.

That’s not the only reason Penn State’s coach hired Trautwein this year to replace Matt Limegrover as offensive line coach. But his story should serve as motivation for his players.

Trautwein’s father was in the Air Force, so the family moved around the country until settling in Voorhees, N.J., when he was in the second grade.

“When I was growing up, Penn State was Penn State,” Trautwein said Tuesday during a conference call with reporters. “Everybody talked about it like it was the school to go to.”

Trautwein went to Eastern Regional High School and helped his team win a state championship. More importantly, he read Adam Taliaferro’s book about the spinal cord injury he suffered while playing cornerback at Penn State. Like Trautwein, Taliaferro is an Eastern graduate.

He said Taliaferro has reached out to him, and his story has been motivational.

“(He is) someone I looked up to and what he did and how we overcame it,” Trautwein said. “It actually motivated me to overcome a lot of things that I had to overcome.”

Before his senior season, Trautwein had a broken foot when he was scheduled to attend a Nike camp at Penn State. He went anyway.

“I was supposed to be in a boot, but I told the doctor, ‘No, I’m going and try to get an offer from Penn State.’ ”

He said the injury might have hindered his efforts, and Penn State did not offer a scholarship. But football turned out well for Trautwein.

He went to Florida, played offensive tackle and tight end and won two national championships with Tim Tebow.

He bounced around four NFL teams before deciding to make coaching his career. Franklin hired him from Boston College’s staff after last season.

He has an added benefit of an experienced group, with three seniors atop the depth chart: center Michal Menet, right guard C.J. Thorpe (Central Catholic) and right tackle Will Fries.

He said Thorpe is starting to understand the finer points of line play.

“He’s been getting away with his athleticism, and now he’s starting to understand technique is really important because he’s powerful in the weight room,” Trautwein said.

“To take the next step, he has to get technically and fundamentally sound, which is huge, and he’s buying into that.”

Meanwhile, Fries isn’t letting the down time caused by the covid-19 pandemic go to waste.

“He showed me a picture of a punching bag he built in the backyard,” Trautwein said. “That’s the mentality I love in my offensive line. Offensive line is all about doing the little things no one else wants to do, and Will has that mindset.”

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