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James Franklin addresses expectations for Drew Allar: ‘He doesn’t need to force anything’

Rolando Rosa

By Rolando Rosa

Published:

James Franklin is set to potentially hand the keys to Penn State’s offense to sophomore quarterback Drew Allar heading into the Week 1 matchup vs. West Virginia.

With Sean Clifford now a member of the Green Bay Packers, the stage is set for Allar to showcase his skills.

The 6-foot-5, 243-pound Allar passed for 344 yards, 4 touchdowns, and no interceptions with a 60.0 QBR during his freshman campaign.

When recently asked about what he thinks he’ll discover about Allar in Week 1, Franklin expressed that there’s already been promising aspects gleaned.

“Well, obviously you’re gonna learn a lot. I mean, he’s played so we kind of have an understanding of that, but there’s difference being the starter and playing starter-type reps,” Franklin said. “So you know, obviously, at the end of the day, I want him to continue to play like he did last year with poise and a really good understanding of how to manage the game.”

Frankin is imploring Allar to play within himself and let the game come naturally to him.

“I also want him to let the plays come to him because with our running game and with the weapons that we have at tight end and wide receiver, he doesn’t need to force anything,” Franklin said. “He doesn’t have to feel like he’s got too much on his shoulders between our defense, our special teams, our running game.”

Franklin feels comfortable with the offensive game plan in Allar’s hands but still wants him to value each possession.

“I feel like we can go out there and just call the game the way we want to call it,” Franklin said. “But, I want him to feel like ‘Hey, I got enough weapons around me. I just got to manage the game and allow my experience and confidence to grow as the season goes on.'”

Penn State-West Virginia is slated for Sept. 2 at 7:30 p.m. EST and will be televised on NBC.

Rolando Rosa

Rolando Rosa brings his experience covering college football to Saturday Tradition. Follow him on Twitter @RolandoRosa3.