Penn State coach James Franklin sees an improved team in Happy Valley — and a program that can’t escape the shadow cast by the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.

Franklin made some pointed comments about negative recruiting against the Nittany Lions, saying there are issues that need to be addressed possibly at the conference level.

“I think there’s a fine line to that,” he said at Big Ten Media Days on Monday. “I think some things need to be addressed. I do think there’s a line you do not cross. But I guess in some ways that’s the nature of the beast. I think some people are going to look for weaknesses and try to take advantage of those. But to me, there is a line that you do not cross. We’ll see how that whole thing plays out. There is a time and a place for everything.”

Franklin’s comments came in the wake of recently disclosed allegations from men who have accused Sandusky of sexual abuse that raised fresh questions about what his fellow Penn State assistant coaches might have seen or known before his November 2011 arrest — and why they have largely kept quiet. The allegations have also raised questions about just how far back late coach Joe Paterno became aware of the situation.