Big Ten Media Day recap: Penn State news, notes, quotes, and more

INDIANAPOLIS — Day 1 of Big Ten Media Days here at Lucas Oil Stadium is over. Penn State is ready to took center stage. The Nittany Lions had head coach James Franklin, offensive tackle Olu Fashanu, defensive end Adisa Isaac, and safety Keaton Ellis on hand for an afternoon full of interviews, photo and video shoots, time on the Big Ten Network set, and more as the conference holds its annual kickoff event.

Seven teams from the league will answer questions from reporters and accomplish other media-related tasks today. Penn State is joined by representatives from Illinois, Rutgers, Michigan State, Northwestern, Iowa, and Ohio State on Wednesday. First-year Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti will also speak. So, too, will conference coordinator of officials Bill Carollo and various NBC Sports personalities as the network begins its first year of a multi-season agreement to air Big Ten games. The remaining seven schools will be behind the microphone on Thursday.

This was your home for live updates throughout the day. Read on to learn more about the event as it unfolded. The oldest updates are at the bottom, and the newest at the top.

Live Updates Part 3

4:35 p.m. – James Franklin vets NIL info with questionnaire, recruiting, friendships. Click Here to read more.

4:00 p.m. – Penn State coach James Franklin nearly didn’t make Deion Barnes his new defensive line coach. Click here to read more.

3:35 p.m. – Watch James Franklin’s complete breakout session from Big Ten Media Days.

Live Penn State updates from Big Ten Media Days, Part 2

3:10 p.m. – James Franklin’s podium session is over. He’s coming up at 3:15 on BTN.

2:52 p.m. – Franklin has fielded a ton of NIL questions during the second half of this session. He also was just asked about Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who he chucked and responded “He’s good” when asked what he thought about the Buckeye. The Penn State coach also just said Khalil Dinkins could be someone we’re not talking about now but could be by mid-season.

2:36 p.m. – Asked about being nervous about losing players to the portal because of NIL offers from other schools, Franklin said “Before the portal opened back up everybody in that country was concerned what that was going to look like but we had a ton of convos with our players. Although we’ve had challenge in NIL space there is a ton of respect from our players about how we’ve handled things and there are examples of places that were aggressive early on, which is good, but also if not handled well, it can cause some real issues in your locker room too.”

2:29 p.m. – Franklin on Adisa Isaac: “I’m like a proud father. He grinds. I think he’s gong to have a big year. I think we have a DE room that I’m excited about, and we have the depth and talent to push and challenge each other.”

2:20 p.m. – James Franklin on special teams battles: “We were able to go into the transfer portal and get some experienced punter and kicker to compete. We needed competition at P and K. Not that we didn’t think current guys can do it, but I want them competing, and we didn’t really have it. They’ve been competing all summer. It’ll take some time.”

2:17 p.m. – James Franklin on not playing OSU every year: “I don’t think we were ever a protected rival (with OSU), just on the same side of divisions. I think there are some things you’re going to lose (with expansion). But I think the Big Ten has made decisions from a strategy perspective to get six teams into the CFP. Everything we talk about needs to be based on how do we get as many teams as possible into the Playoffs.”

2:11 p.m. – Players are about wrapped up. Adisa Isaac thinks camp will be a big time to figure out the defensive tackle leaders. Keaton Ellis said he’s being more vocal as a captain but otherwise hasn’t changed. James Franklin is up next.

1:55 p.m. – Adisa Isaac says he’s as close to 100 percent as he’s been since suffering an Achillies injury two years ago. It allowed him to do extra work this offseason.

1:50 p.m. – James Franklin and Mel Tucker were both asked about the season finale against their two teams being moved to not only Ford Field, but also Black Friday. Read more by clicking here.

1:35 p.m. – Greg Pickel breaks down his key takeaways from Franklin’s podium. Read more by clicking here.

1:15 p.m. – Afternoon podium sessions are underway. Penn State players start at 1:45, so check back for more news then.

Live updates from Big Ten Media Days, Part 1

12:51 p.m. — Brief break in the action until podium stuff begins at 1:15 p.m.

12:41 p.m. — Here’s our first story of the day from James Franklin’s time at the podium. It focuses on quarterbacks. Surprise! Read more by clicking here.

12:22 p.m. – How do you structure your roster to face Ohio State and Michigan, two teams who have very different offenses

It starts with what’s best for Penn State. What’s best for PSU, from a talent and size perspective? But they study what Michigan and Ohio State is doing, but at the end of the day, it’s about what’s best for Manny and Yurcich more than anything else.

12:20 p.m. – What does he think about changing Michigan State to Friday night and in Detroit?

It’ll be challenging moving it up to Friday night with injuries, bumps and bruises, but both teams have to deal with that. But both Penn State and Michigan State fans will travel well. It’ll be a great environment. Being indoors is a positive, too. They’ve had great games against Michigan State and they’re looking forward to it.

12:17 p.m. – What does Franklin and Mike Yurcich need to see from the quarterback battle and when do they want it to be finalized?

Franklin said the sooner the better, but they’re not going to rush any decisions. We grade everything in every practice. The data will be there. They’ll trust their gut and instincts, but they have the data to back it up. He added that it’s magnified at the quarterback position because they don’t rotate as much, but how do they operate the offense and they trust they’ve built with their teammates? They’ll use that, the data and go with the gut.

12:15 p.m. – What did he like about St. Elmos and their world-famous shrimp cocktail?

Franklin said they had a great time spending time with players. The owner is a Penn State grad. As much as he tried to coach the players up on the process of drinking famous shrimp cocktails, Adisa now knows how strong that sauce and horseradish is. But overall, it was a great night.

12:13 p.m. – How have the summer enrollees done so far?

Franklin said that coach interaction has been limited, but feedback from the players has been good. They have good data with testing numbers that are encouraging. The number of true freshmen who impacted the team last year was positive and he thinks a few guys who just enrolled can do that this year. Mentioned Abdul Carter as a great example. By the middle of the season, everyone was talking about Abdul but not at media day last year. But Franklin knows he’ll need some young guys and transfers to make an impact.

12:11 p.m. – How does he feel about losing Ohio State and Michigan on their schedule yearly?

Franklin believes the Big Ten has made some decisions that he thinks most people would agree is putting the conference in the best position to compete for national championships and get multiple teams into the playoffs. Obviously, with any decision they make, there’s give and take. But for the most part, the benefits will outweigh those things. There will still be great games and great opponents.

12:10 p.m. -Where does PSU stands with NIL?

Franklin feels that under Pat Kraft, they’ve closed that gap and have made progress. He’s encouraged with the direction they’re going.

12:05 p.m. – James Franklin’s opening statement

Franklin said he’s really excited about the upcoming season. He welcomed the new commissioner and says he’s excited about what he’s bringing to the conference and the leadership he’s brought so far.

Franklin added that he’s excited to open up the season against a great opponent in West Virginia at 7:30 p.m. He says this year’s team has fewer question marks this year compared to previous seasons. They have more depth this year to compete in the conference as well as nationally.

Defensively, they have the potential to be better up front. They’re bigger and more physical and they’re three-deep across the board. Linebacker is more proven now with veterans who are experienced and ready to play.

The secondary, losing Tig and Joey Porter, is the one area he has a question mark still. However, they have talent and depth there with experience.

Offensively, bringing back Olu Fashanu, who has the best GPA on the team, to lead is massive for them. They’re in a much better position now. The experience they got at running back was impressive but they need to build on that.

The tight end room will be good, but they still need to find their third wide receiver. They have young players who can step up. At quarterback, they’re still in a competition phase but he understands why everyone is talking about Drew Allar after he played in 10 games last year. But Beau Pribula is another guy that everyone respects.

They do have a competition at kicker and punter that they need to get resolved.

11:42 a.m. — MSU coach Mel Tucker on Penn State playing the Spartans at Ford Field: “Great exposure for our program. A national audience. It’s going to be a great game. We’ll be in the Detroit area where we recruit. I think that it’s a great opportunity. I’m looking forward to it.”

11:31 a.m. — “Coach [Joe] Paterno used to say don’t worry about the ones you don’t get, make sure you love coaching the ones you do get, and that’s what I live by.”

–Rutgers coach Greg Schiano.

11:17 a.m. — Bielema just wrapped up. He seems to feel really good about where Illinois is. Penn State will face them in September, of course. No one ever feels bad in this setting, though. But, he’s a bit more confident than expected.

11:06 a.m. — We’re underway with the coaches. Bret Bielema is up first. James Franklin walked into Lucas Oil Stadium around 10:30 a.m. He and the Penn State players are currently busy with photo shoots.