James Franklin did a holiday meeting with the press on Monday, previewing Penn State’s second game of the year and looking back at the opener against Nevada. As always, click HERE to read word-for-word what Franklin had to say or look below for this blogger’s summary.
Opening Statement
Franklin recapped some of the facts and figures from the Nevada game, mentioning how Penn State was able to get a lot of different players on the field and that included some who had missed significant time last year because of injury. Overall, Franklin said the team played a pretty clean football game, but will need to take a step this week. He noted the team settling for too many field goals as a point of frustration. He also did the familiar by highlighting some of FIU’s players and coaches ahead of this weekend’s THON contest.
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Passing Evaluation
Franklin was asked to assess the play of his two quarterbacks. He was complimentary of both before turning to how the offense was able to get Kyron Hudson and Trebor Pena involved, too. He did mention that they would look to get Devonte Ross more involved in coming weeks, as well as hitting more down-the-field explosive pass plays.
On the Couch
What’s James Franklin’s routine after he leaves Beaver Stadium? It’s to spend a little time with his family and then head to his basement to watch football in his “boxers” (his words, not mine). Franklin noted how he watches a lot of football and sometimes his staff will use situational things from games that they see with their own team. Who does James watch? Well, sometimes it depends on Penn State’s schedule.
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Defensive Line Update
Franklin talked about developing depth along the defensive line, mentioning a lot of players by name in this answer. Big takeaway was that Zuriah Fisher should be available to play very soon. The oft-injured defensive end was held out on Saturday. Franklin expects both Fisher and Mason Robinson to be healthy and available soon to add depth there. Also, Franklin had some praise for Enai White, who has converted to defensive tackle from defensive end.
Change at Punter
Penn State didn’t punt on Saturday. Had they, it would have been Gabe Nwosu doing the punting, rather than returning starter Riley Thompson. Franklin praised Nwosu for his work in camp, saying he was the closest guy they’ve had to being able to fill all punting roles since Jordan Stout went to the NFL.
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Failed Trick Play
We’re definitely in “the game on Saturday was boring” phase when Franklin was asked about Penn State’s botched two-point conversion. He said it was failing in both execution and teaching. The goal, however, was to put stuff on tape for opponents to think about in the future.
Explaining the Run Game
Penn State was dominant with its running game to close out last season, but those explosive plays didn’t show up on Saturday against Nevada. Franklin explained a lot of that was by Nevada’s choice – committing an extra man to stopping the run and allowing Drew Allar some relatively easy medium-length throws. Franklin did say the team would need to be better running in obvious situations against such numbers in the future.
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Who Flashed?
Asked to think of young guys who played well late in the game, Franklin mentioned some of those who were returning from injury, as well as cornerback Daryus Dixon.
Valuable Reps
A backup QB question that turned pretty general. Franklin said getting backups reps is important. He noted that both of his backup QBs have practiced well, but it was good to see Grunk handle live action well.
Running Back Room
Franklin clarified that Quinton Martin had been dealing with an injury and that kept him out on Saturday. He talked about looking for consistency with guys like Cam Wallace, Corey Smith, and others behind the entrenched starters.
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More About Injured Guys
Franklin was asked specifically about Andrew Rappleyea (tight end) and Keon Wylie (linebacker) as they make their back from injuries. Franklin admitted that Luke Reynolds probably would have redshirted last year had Rappleyea not been injured against West Virginia. He said that Wylie has a ton of ability and that the staff is waiting for everything to click.
Red Zone Struggles
Penn State scored 46 points, but a lot will be made about having to settle for four field goals. Franklin said a lot of the issues that led to those field goals came because the Lions had too many negative plays on early downs in the red zone. He mentioned that they have a lot of offensive linemen who seem poised to play, but that they needed to clean things up in that regard.
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Scheduling Thoughts
We’ve really hit the “little left to talk about” stretch as Franklin was asked about the SEC moving to a nine-game conference schedule with a P4 non-conference game being mandated. Franklin said that’s an offseason type of question, but reiterated that he wants to see all power conferences playing similar schedules.
Tempo Check
Franklin referred to his offense’s tempo as being a weapon that they want to use this year. He noted the bad snap in the red zone – one that he said Drew should have caught, but that Nick Dawkins would blame himself for – as a mistake that cost them a walk-in touchdown.
Obviously Count: 16, 15 by James
