Everything Penn State coach James Franklin said after beating Boise State 31-14 in the Fiesta Bowl

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Penn State coach James Franklin was in a good mood as expected as he met with the media here at State Farm Stadium following a 31-14 win over Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl that punched the Nittany Lions’ ticket to the College Football Playoff semifinals. He started his postgame news conference with an opening statement.

“I want to give Boise a ton of credit,” Franklin said. “I think it’s a really, really good football team. They’ve been winning there for a long time. Coach [Spencer] Danielson has done a phenomenal job. Obviously,  could go on and on about their players. We talked a lot,- these guys are sick of me talking about their running back Ashton Jeanty. Ton of respect for him and what he’s- done in his entire career is special.  But at the end of the day, we played a complete game, offense, defense, and special teams,  complementary football. Did some special things tonight. I’m just proud of our guys. 

“We talked in the beginning of the season about our guys having these types of moments and these  types of experiences and these types of opportunities. Love the fact that these guys were able to find  a win against a really good opponent here, and these two guys obviously leading the way.  

“Just a couple of things I’ll say, 13 wins, first time in program history. Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton  both surpassing 1,000 yards in the same season. First time we’ve ever had two 1,000 yard rushers in  the same season since joining the Big Ten. Then 34 wins over the last three years. We’re very, very proud of that. Consistency is hard to do, and  our guys have done a great job at it. The maturity they’ve shown has been impressive.  8-0 in Fiesta Bowls. Penn State loves the Fiesta Bowl. We’ll come every year.”

Read everything else Franklin had to say below.

On the play of Penn State running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen

“Everybody wants to talk about their running backs,” Franklin said. “But one of the things we talk about all the time is the game of football starts up front. Always has, always will. I thought our d-line was disruptive today and was a major factor in the game. I thought our o-line was able to control the line of scrimmage. We talk about the o-line, tight ends, obviously the running backs.

“That’s Kaytron. Kaytron breaks tackles. He runs people over. He’s a physical, physical back. Nick, obviously, if you give him a crease, he has got a chance to go 80 at any minute. So, they’re  really good complementary backs. They’ve been playing together for a long time. When we’re able to get the outside zone going like we were able to do today, kind of opens everything else up and gets people running sideline to sideline, which creates creases.  

“I’m happy. Nick was grinding it out, grinding it out. We weren’t having as much success. Then all of a  sudden, he was able to break the big one, which was huge. You love to see that happen. Then like I said, Kaytron is just a workhorse. It starts up front with the o-line. They don’t get enough credit, but it’s great to see those two backs have success.”

On how the Lions managed to contain Boise State star Ashton Jeanty

“I think we did corral him. Not “sort of.” I think we did corral,” Franklin said. “They got some yards there at the end. And I think defensively, I think our team was sick of me talking  about him. I think we got the point across about the respect that we have for that young man and the  type of running back he is. 

“Even today, I think our defense would say they have a ton of respect for him and how many tackles  he was able to break and how strong he is and the contact balance. He’s an impressive guy. But we’re pretty good on defense. Thought our d-line did a really good job of being disruptive and  getting in the backfield. I thought we did a really good job gang-tackling. There were a few times  where we didn’t wrap like we should have. But for the most part, our defense played lights out. 

“It was numbers in the box. Obviously being able to play man coverage also helps with that, because  you’re able to drop a safety down there and get an extra man to add numbers.  But really good back. We made them earn it today.  I think the other thing that our guys have heard about is the records that he had a chance to break  today, too. It was a highly motivated group.”

On the status of injured Penn State All-American defensive end Abdul Carter

“With Abdul, I don’t know a whole lot,” Franklin said. “We’ll get that checked out and see.  Obviously, number one, the safety and health and welfare of our guys is priority number one. But then, I know Abdul will want to play next week and he’ll do everything in his power to play next week, if he’s able to. We’ll find out more. I don’t have a whole lot more information than that.”

On how the Lions being battle tested this season prepared them for this game

“Then in terms of being tested, yeah, I think the Big Ten – -you guys have heard me say this a lot. I’ve  been a head coach in the SEC,” Franklin said. “I’ve been a head coach in the Big Ten. I’ve got tremendous respect for both conferences. I think I have a perspective that most people don’t- have, right? But I think the Big Ten has prepared our guys. We opened the season at West Virginia. Had a tough  Big Ten season. Had to overcome adversity and challenges from the top to the bottom of the  conference. I think those things are valuable.  

“When you’re playing in arguably the two best conferences in all of college football, it prepares  you for games like this.  I think Boise is a really good football team. I’ve got a ton of respect for them and how they go about  their business. It’s been that way for a long time.  

“I think these guys will tell you, we were not taking them lightly. I know they came with those shirts,  “Count us out.” We were not counting those guys out. They had our attention. I think that showed up  today. We talk about the maturity of our football team; I think that shows up. When things don’t go well, our  guys don’t panic. The coaches don’t panic. We learn from it and then we get on to the next play. When you’re playing really good teams at this point in the season, they’re going to make plays.  They’re going to do some good things. You just got to weather the storm and battle back.”

On the success the Big Ten is having so far in the postseason

“Obviously, we want to represent the Big Ten, and that’s important to us,” Franklin said. “But ultimately, I’m worried about Penn State. I’m worried about Tyler Warren and Zakee [Wheatley]  and Penn State and the guys in that locker room. I want them to have an unbelievable college experience. I want them to go on and have a chance to reach their dreams. That’s my focus. 

“I got respect for coaching in the SEC because I’ve been there. Take a lot of pride in representing the  Big Ten. But ultimately, I’m worried about these guys, the guys in that locker room; our fans; the lettermen; Pat Kraft, my boss; Neeli Bendapudi, my boss’ boss; David Kleppinger, my boss’ boss’ boss. He’s chairman of the board.  Then sometimes it feels like all the media and people on blogs, I feel like I work for them sometimes,  too. I don’t spend a whole lot of time on that. I’m focused on our guys.”

On the play of Penn State quarterback Drew Allar

“Last year was the first year starting,” Franklin said. “Won a bunch of  games and did some really good things. His touchdown-interception ratio is phenomenal. Obviously, when this guy gets turnovers and puts the ball back in the offense’s hand, and this guy  more times than not, you can just chuck it up to him, he’s going to come down with it.  

“But Drew makes big-time throws. He’s a big-bodied kid. He was able to make plays with his feet, which I  think has been a huge part of his development and our offense’s growth.  But Drew has had a phenomenal college career, and I think it’s only going to get better. We’re going to need that.”

“But makes bigtime throws. Obviously, we started out the game on fire. And then we made things more difficult than it needed to be with penalties and things like that. There were a ton of penalties in this game, really, for both teams. We made it a little bit harder than it needed to be.”

What does Franklin think of Georgia and Notre Dame, one of which the Lions will play in the semifinals?

“Honestly, I want to enjoy this Boise win and this Fiesta Bowl win for a couple hours,” Franklin said. “We’re going to enjoy the new year. We’re going to enjoy this win for a couple hours, and then obviously we’ll start to get a little bit of a head start on these teams. But obviously, two great programs. Won a bunch of games. History, tradition, talent, coaching. At this  point in the season, you’re going to play really good people, and we’re excited about that opportunity.  

“But tonight, we want to enjoy this for a couple of hours. There will be plenty of time, and hours, to get  focused on those next opponents.”

On the play of Zakee Wheatley and Tyler Warren

“When you’re able to recruit guys out of high school that come from great high school programs. Kyle  Schmitt, who played for me at the University of Maryland, has done a phenomenal job,” Franklin said. “He’s one of  the best high school coaches in America at [Archbishop] Spalding High School.  

“Zakee [Wheatley] played wide receiver as well as defensive back. Probably could play wide receiver  at Penn State. When you get guys like that, that have got so many different skills, speed, range,  athleticism, confidence. He started out at corner, I think that helps him. He’s very confident in  covering people. He’s very confident in attacking the ball. He’s just a talented, talented guy. He’s  gotten significantly better every single year, every single year. I don’t think he’s talked about enough  on a national scale.  

“This guy [Tyler Warren], everybody is talking about him and deservedly so. But we need to get more  people talking about this gentleman right here.”

Why does Franklin preach a 1-0 mentality?

“Obviously, I wouldn’t say it’s overly unique, but I’m a big believer in being present,” Franklin said. “One of the things I just got on the guys in the locker room, a bunch of guys are on their  phones. I get that that’s this generation now. Twitter, Instagram, whatever it may be, I get it.  

“But what I do know is PJ Mustipher and Jesse Luketa, all the guys that were on the sideline kind of  supporting our guys, they would die to be back in our locker room. I just think being present is such  an important quality for all of us, right? That’s what 10 is all about, right? Whether it’s the game,  whether it is the exam or the class, and even for myself, sitting with my wife and kids and my phone  is going off, pushing the phone away and being present. I know I got to be better about that.  

“It’s just an important trait and quality that I think you have to have. I think it could be a differentiator in  today’s society and specifically in college football. The fans all look at our schedule and they want to  talk about certain games. We understand the importance of certain games, I get it. But it’s also a big  part of consistency in college football.  

“There’s teams that get a big win against a certain opponent, and then they lose to somebody the next  week they shouldn’t do. For the most part, we haven’t done that. I think our guys have embraced it.  We have reinforced it over and over and over again. As you know, I’m a big believer in routine, and  I’m a big believer in consistency and consistency in message.  

“For a lot of our guys, it’s helpful when things are going crazy, they’re being pulled in a thousand different directions and you can take a deep breath and focus on whether it’s 1-0 or our core values.  Those types of things, I think, are important.”

On the success of the Lions’ run game

“Running game and defense travels, that’s going to show up throughout a season,” Franklin said. “That’s going to show up in bad weather. That’s going to show up when you’re trying to run  four minute like, there at the end of the game, there was a lot of time left, and we kind of went four  minute. We were snapping the ball under four seconds. We were trying to take time off the clock. We  were trying to keep our defense off the field, trying to keep their running back off the field.  

“So when you’re able to run the ball, it is a powerful thing at this point of the season. We want to be  able to rely on that. It also sets you up in your play action passes as well; makes them more  explosive. Being able to run the ball, being able to control the line of scrimmage, whether it’s your  offensive line or our defensive line, is critical. It showed up tonight. To your point, it’s really kind of  showed up all season.”