James Franklin previews Penn State's major matchup with Ohio State during weekly presser
Penn State is coming off a heartbreaking 20-18 upset 9OT loss to Illinois. The Nittany Lions now have to go on the road to face a red hot Ohio State team who is No. 5 in the country.
Head coach James Franklin spoke to the media ahead of the matchup with the Buckeyes.
Franklin talks about the effort in the 9OT loss.
James Franklin up now with his opening statement. “I thought we competed our tails off for 60 minutes and nine overtimes. … Biggest issue in my mind is we didn’t capitalize on the turnovers.”
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) October 26, 2021
Franklin addressed the rumors of him signing with a different agent this offseason.
Is James Franklin changing agents in the middle of the season and could it be a distraction? He changed agents in the summer, he said.
“Completely focused on our season and our team and finding a way to beat Ohio State and be 1-0 this week. I’m not gonna get into the details.”
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) October 26, 2021
Franklin spoke to the media about running game issues.
Franklin on the common themes with Penn State’s running game problems: “We gotta be more physical up front. I think that’s really important. We’ve got to get vertical push with the O-line and the tight ends.”
— David Eckert (@davideckert98) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about shuffling the OL during the Illinois game.
“We’ll continue to evaluate that,” Franklin said of where Mike Miranda and Juice Scruggs will play. Scruggs of course moved to C during the game, Miranda to guard. “We’re looking for as many things as we can to improve in that area, specifically when it comes to the run game.”
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) October 26, 2021
Franklin gave an injury update on a few players.
James Franklin referred to Sal Wormley as a starter today. He’s been lost for the season due to injury, but apparently was in a position to start as of the summer. That, along with DE Adisa Isaac, is something to remember for the future.
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about not capitalizing on turnovers in the Illinois game.
James Franklin, “The biggest thing in my mind is we did not capitalize on turnovers. We had 3 points off of three turnovers. That was probably the biggest factor in the game, in my opinion.”
— Elton Hayes (@EHDC12) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about the preparation for their game against No. 5 Ohio State.
Franklin on Ohio State: “We’ve got to get healthy, and we’ve got to go and play smart. We’re going to have to limit explosive plays.
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin addresses the rumors of him being a candidate for job openings across the country.
Franklin on continued rumors about other jobs: “We’ve kept it very direct…there’s things that we can control, and there’s things that we can’t from the outside.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about how they handled the Illini rushing attack.
Franklin on Illinois’ rushing attack: “At the end of the day, we held them to 10 points. We’ve been a little bit of a ‘bend, but don’t break’ defense all year long.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about losing consecutive games.
Franklin on losing consecutive games: “These things can get magnified. Wins can get magnified, losses can get magnified. So keeping our guys as focused as we possibly can is a challenge.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin spoke about star WR Jahan Dotson.
Franklin on Jahan Dotson: “I’m really proud of Jahan and how he’s really developed in every area…he’s always had the ability to catch the ball, he makes really difficult catches look easy.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about how the guys responded after the Saturday loss.
Franklin said he was “pleased with Sunday” after the loss and “a bunch of guys” were in watching tape on their day off Monday.
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about the fan base in Happy Valley.
Franklin: “I know how passionate our people are. There’s nobody that’s more passionate that the coaches in our building and the players in our locker room.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
Franklin talked about needing more depth at the DT position.
Franklin on the defensive tackle position: “We’re going to need that depth moving forward with the rest of the season we have…we’re going to need to find that sooner rather than later.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 26, 2021
This week, No. 20 Penn State hits the road to take on No. 5 Ohio State in primetime at 7:30 ET on ABC.
