James Franklin considers how to address ‘ifs’ surrounding 2023 Penn State roster

Penn State head coach James Franklin isn’t worried about the uncertainties on the road ahead. Franklin is putting his foot on the gas and sticking to his schemes.

“We really approach [the season] the same way every single year,” Franklin said on Wednesday. “Every team in the country has strengths. And every team in the country has some areas that maybe don’t have the depth that they need at the time or have some deficiencies and need to play a certain style to disguise some of those deficiencies early on. I mean, no one’s got the perfect team or the perfect roster. So, we’re approaching it the same way that we always do.”

Franklin’s roster is the closest it’s been to perfect in a long time. Per ESPN, Penn State’s defense returns 75% of its production from last season, the 22nd-most in the country. While the Nittany Lions return just 55% of their offense, they boast promising fresh faces.

Quarterback Drew Allar is the poster child for this exciting young group. The former five-star prospect rode the bench his freshman year behind Penn State standout Sean Clifford. Nonetheless, with Clifford gone, Allar is firmly in the driver’s seat.

Allar is just one of Penn State’s promising prospects. The team also boasts rising stars Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen in the backfield. Franklin feels like his team is deeper than ever.

“One of the things I think has been very different in this camp is a lot of times it’s difficult to develop the [third-string players] because you may have a third group somewhere that doesn’t have the depth so it impacts the development of all the other groups,” Franklin said. “Us being able, in college football, to bring 120 [players] into camp [instead of] 110 I thought had a significant impact in that.”

Depth will be key for Penn State. After all, Franklin intimately understands how a small lapse can lead to disastrous results. In 2016, Franklin led the program to a Big Ten title and win over Ohio State in the same season.

However, due to a loss to a subpar Pittsburgh squad, the Nittany Lions did not make the College Football Playoff. Franklin doesn’t intend to make the same mistake. The 51-year-old coach can’t wait to begin the 2023 campaign.

“We’re gonna play whoever is on our schedule. We’re gonna play wherever the games are at,” Franklin said. “There’s some excitement about opening here at home, especially prime time, 7:30 at night. Should be a great environment against a regional opponent and I think our players and our staff are excited about the opportunity.”