What James Franklin said following Penn State's devastating loss to Illinois
Well, a game for the ages did not fall Penn State’s way when it was all said and done.
Coming off the bye week, the Nittany Lions welcomed Illinois to Happy Valley. Entering the game, Bret Bielema and the Illini were 2-5 and without a conference win since knocking off Nebraska in Week 0.
Unfortunately for Penn State, Illinois flipped the script while rushing for 357 yards. Chase Brown rushed for over 200 while Josh McCray added 142 on the ground. By contrast, the Nittany Lions managed just 62 yards rushing while Sean Clifford went 19-for-34 with 165 yards through the air.
At the end of regulation, Penn State and Illinois were knotted at 10-all. The two sides would go on to complete 9 OT sessions with Illinois coming up with a stop and a score of its own for the upset.
Now at 5-2 with 2 conference losses, Penn State’s chances at winning the B1G East are slim at best. The Nittany Lions must still face Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State, all very difficult games that appear more difficult after the shocking loss to Illinois.
Here’s what head coach James Franklin said after the loss:
“We felt like Sean gave us the best opportunity to win.” James Franklin says.
— Ben Jones (@Ben_Jones88) October 23, 2021
Franklin says Penn State had “way too many guys” that missed significant practice time throughout the week.
Sean Clifford was one of those guys.
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 23, 2021
Franklin: “They’re heavy sets creates challenges for us…We had other opportunities to make big plays and we did not.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 23, 2021
Franklin: “Obviously we were struggling on offense all day long. Those same issues showed up in the overtime periods…There was plenty of plays and opportunities for us to end it. Either we did not make plays or we did not execute…”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 23, 2021
Franklin says his “natural inclination” is to start coaching and going over mistakes in the locker room, but it is not yet the time to do it. Says adjustments will start to be made on Sunday.
“The hardest part of my job is to address those things after a tough loss.”
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) October 23, 2021
James Franklin’s news conference was rather short. Said he felt Sean Clifford gave Penn State the best chance to win.
— Greg Pickel (@GregPickel) October 23, 2021