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James Franklin on Michigan’s defense: ‘They kicked our butts’
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James Franklin usually tells it like it is. After Penn State’s 42-7 loss to Michigan on Saturday, he had no trouble being blunt and matter-of-fact.
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong for the Nittany Lions in Ann Arbor this weekend. It was the second time in three years that Franklin and Co. was blown out by the Wolverines. They dominated the game in every category, and the Penn State head coach had no trouble admitting it.
In particular, Franklin was impressed with Michigan’s defense.
“Obviously, defensively, they kicked our butts,” Franklin said after the game. “Our defense has been on the field way too many reps the last couple weeks. Give Michigan credit, they’re a good football team. We did not play well today.”
Michigan’s defense held Penn State to just 186 yards of offense and a paltry 68 rushing yards. The Nittany Lions also had three turnovers and only had the football for 22:04.
With the loss, the Nittany Lions dropped to 6-3 on the season and 3-3 in the B1G.
Saturday’s matchup was expected to be a huge test for Don Brown’s defense. As Penn State brought one of the highest-scoring offenses to Ann Arbor. Clearly, the Wolverines had absolutely no problem with Trace McSorley and Co.
Michigan’s defense also limited Penn State to just 11 first downs and the Lions were a meager 2-of-11 on third down conversions.
It was one of the ugliest offensive performances Penn State has had in quite some time. And most of the credit goes to Brown and the Michigan defense.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB