James Franklin comments on Abdul Carter’s situation, status

The Penn State Nittany Lions young star linebacker Abdul Carter recently found himself in hot water. On Tuesday, news broke that Carter would be charged by the Penn State University Police Department with possession of marijuana. On Wednesday, following practice, head coach James Franklin addressed this situation and the steps he and the institution are currently taking.

“Yeah, as you know, we don’t talk about those things publicly. Obviously, it’s being handled and dealt with internally. This is new to you guys; it’s not new to us, as you can imagine,” said Franklin in Wednesday’s post-practice press conference.

Local Philadelphia news station WJAC-TV first reported the news on Carter that the university’s police department charged the sophomore linebacker with a misdemeanor possession of marijuana charge. The amount of the substance that was found in Carter’s possession was not revealed. However, a misdemeanor possession charge for marijuana is a citation levied on individuals found with a small amount deemed for personal consumption. The incident originally dates back to early August. Below is the original statement from the local Philadelphia news team.

“Police say on August 8th, university police was dispatched to the Nittany Apartments for a fire alarm activation. Authorities say further investigation determined that the fire alarm had been activated by Carter smoking marijuana in his dorm room. Police say Carter openly admitted to using marijuana and willing [sic] surrendered a baggie of the drugs to officers.”

It is unclear at this moment whether or not Carter will face any discipline from the team or the university itself following the charges. The Nittany Lions linebacker did suit up and play in Penn State’s season opener against the West Virginia Mountaineers. In that contest, Carter finished the game with one tackle, which was a tackle for loss, and one sack.

Penn State has one more non-conference opponent in Week 2 before they officially kick off Big Ten conference play with a road game against Illinois in Week 3. Next up for the Nittany Lions is a home matchup against the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens.

If Franklin and the powers that be at Penn State intend on any further disciplinary action for Carter, it could be seen as early as this weekend’s matchup against Delaware. The Nittany Lions head coach will remain silent on the matter until all parties involved can come up with a viable solution.