Live updates: James Franklin weekly press conference

Penn State head coach James Franklin is addressing the media on Monday afternoon from Beaver Stadium. His Nittany Lions are 2-0 ahead of a Saturday matchup with Kent State at home.

Live updates: James Franklin weekly press conference

(Press conference is set to begin at noon. Updates will appear in reverse chronological order. Press conference has ended at 12:40 p.m.)

Questions in the room

Sacks/pressure: Have been as successful as anyone over the past 10 years. That’s always the plan. What you want to try to do is, what is the strength of the defense and how you nullify it. Quick game, screens, move the pocket, run the ball. Keep it close. The other thing you can do to throw a curveball to the gameplan is get up by enough early in the game that forces opponent to get away from that game plan. Get them down by 17-21 points where they have to throw it more to get back in the game, that leads to more opportunities as well. And playing at home is a positive at Penn State. Magnified here. SO whatever their game plan is, if you can play with a lead and do it at home where they have to get away from original gameplan and throw more than they’d like, those things combined lead to production in that stat of sacks and TFLs. Also deals with the opponents as well. WVU was one of best teams in the country of not giving up sacks. All those things factor in. End of the day, want more production in that area and thinks it’s going to come.

SEC/B1G expansion impact: This is what everyone anticipated. That B1G and SEC would be in a position to be dominant. The challenge you have with that, and what commissioners were working on, is you get to a point where all games are B1G/B1G and SEC/SEC, and where does that leave you? People were upset talking about SEC and B1G getting so many into the playoff. Will get to the point where they’ll just be playing each other.

What he and everyone expected. That’s where they’re at now. But if you look at preseason rankings and how many teams have some losses earlier in the year than you expect, you better approach each team with the right mentality and getting better. But at this point in the season, probably about what most people anticipated. But want to make sure later in the season, B1G and SEC teams with multiple losses getting in over teams in other conferences with single losses due to strength of both conferences.

Message to players and fans seeing this as a credible opponent: When you schedule these opponents five and seven years out, you don’t know wht you’re going to get. You schedule a MAC team and some have caused people fits, and then you can get to a year where someone is struggling. That’s unpredictable and challenging.

For Penn State, and this is the challenge of college football, is it’s about them and their focus on Penn State, getting better, developing, and playing up to standard week in and out. Easier said than done. Happens every weekend in college football. Doesn’t always come from an oponent the fans, media, and locker room think it’s going to come from. Ultimately, trying to get staff and players to approach every week with the same mentality, same prep, same approach. When you do that, you give yourself the best chance to be consistent and get better. That’s what their focus is.

Generating yards against defenses that take away deep passes:

There are two very different categories. Cover two is totally different than quarters for what you’re asking specifically. People have been running quarters for a long time. A way to present a two safety defense and run a nine-man box for run support because both safeties are involved in the run game, which can create challenges for the offense. But also creates opportunity. When safeties are involved in the run game, can throw it over their head. Against Cover 2 or Tampa 2, that’s like having three deep with double cloud corners on the outside.

Cover 2 is called to stop the pass and stop explosive plays in the pass. Quarters is trying to present the middle of the field open but end up with a nine man box. Typically, you’ll see more explosives against a quarters defense compared to cover 2. 

Have done a pretty good job of exposing and attacking quarters defense. Obviously ways to do that against cover 2 as well, but takes longer to be able to threaten those safeties, or put them in a bind with three verticals, sideline, and attacking the middle of the field. Have done a nice job. But running the ball more efficiently and explosively helps with the cover two. Last year that was challenging they could line up in cover two, stop explosives, but pinch the front to take away run game, now ball has to bounce and people aren’t playing trap cover 2 and using a defensive front to try to get ball to bounce to the trap corners.

Distributing touches: It’s just having more plays, which goes hand in hand with third down. You convert a higher percentage of third down and you’re talking about 10-15 more plays per half, which means more opportunities for explosives, and being more efficient by converting on third down. The more plays, the more opportunities for touches. 

Go into every game trying to get everyone involved. But you can’t force it to guys depending on the looks you’re getting. The more plays is really the solution.

Technology impacts: It was going to be an obvious advantage for huddle teams, which Penn State is. Distinct advantage for Penn State offense. Defensively, finding the best ways to do it. 

iPads: They’ve been good. But the headset + the ipads, you have to have structure to it because if not, they can be a distraction. Can give players too much info where players spend all time not on the field with head in ipad and they’re not involved in the game.

Offensively, being able to not signal. Talk to the QB, tell him the play. And a few little coaching points. Defensively, how do you get both corners the information up to 53 yards away from each other. Linebacker comfortable communicating with the DL and setting the front. But now, depending on how you’re using it, asking LB to turn around and communicate to the safeties, so you don’t see the alignment. Has created challenges, specifically on defense.

Kaden Saunders: He’s had a lingering injury. And not that he’s not able to play, but he’s not able to play at 100 percent. He’s a guy that there was and is a ton of excitement about. But he’s had a lingering injury that has slowed that progress and development.

Adding to the offensive playbook: It’s not specific to Kotelnicki but watching opponent tape, a ton of time the D is going against a team that is doing something problematic and you steal it and add it to your game. Or you see another game, NFL, college, or high school, where you see it and add it. Coaches constantly taking things. But you want to be careful not to just take plays. It has to fit. If not, you just have a bunch of cute plays from different systems. Has to complement what they do. Every coach in America is doing that constantly.

Could show up a little more in bye weeks. But not necessarily because if you’re adding things you already do, they’re slight tweaks. Personnel groupings, formation, motion shifts. Usually something they’re already doing but with a different presentation.

Luke Reynolds: He’s been transitioned to a green light. Usually see things moving up from red, yellow, green, but can move the other way as well. But he is green. Was motivated since he got on campus. Attacked workouts, the playbook. Can make plays in the passing game. Unusual in 2024 is that he’ll stick his nose in there. For guys that didn’t do that in high school, that’s a challenge, especially asking him to block Smith Vilbert. Has shown a willingness with that. Big fan of his approach.

A ton of guys that could play as true freshmen. But the guys that have played are showing they’re willing to make the sacrifices and commitment to do it. Some aren’t physically, mentally, or emotionally ready to play. He’s shown he is in all three.

Questions on zoom

Regular season length: That’s not going away. It’s interesting because anytime anyone wants to get something done in college football, say it’s for health and wellness to get things passed, but it’s hard to say that when you’re talking about a regular season plus another possible five games depending on how it plays out for the teams that make the national championship. Doesn’t think that’s the right thing to do, but that’s not changing for the reasons you can imagine.

Just like conferences playing nine games or eight games. Not advantageous for the Big Ten. But once you go nine, you won’t go back to eight. Could actually see going to 10 conference games. 

Doesn’t see that changing. It’s a fair question. Especially if you’re basing everything off student-athlete health and welfare, for a ton of different reasons.

Bill O’Brien: Has known Bill for a long time, Fitz ofr a long time, all at Maryland together. Wives were friends. Followed his career in the NFL. For a lot of guys from that part of the country, BC is a dream job. If you know Billy’s background, it makes a ton of sense. So when that hire happened, thought it was a win-win for BC and Billy. He has a really mobile, dynamic QB that did some nice things last year and when you have that piece of the puzzle you can build from there. Cool to watch it and happy for Bill.

Defense first half Bowling Green: Need to tackle better, and need to be getting better every week, so that’s definite. 

Communication trying to rely on helmet communication exclusively and at home, hard for the guy receiving the communication to be able to communicate to everyone on the field. Defense, you don’t typically huddle. That created challenges and allowed them opportunities to get those things cleaned up in second half and moving forward.

Then discipline of playing the D and not doing more than your job. More they play great team D and are gap accountable, the plays come to you.

KJ Winston: No new information to share at this stage. Probably will post-practice later in the week. 

Dejuan Lane is who they are trying to get reps for. Zakee and Reed have played a ton of football and will need to continue to. Lane will be important to keep getting reps. Have to develop a few more guys. 

Will see timing wise how this plays out, but short term, need to develop more guys. Lane is a guy they had planned to get more involved anyway. He is the guy their focus is on the most right now.

Top priorities of the bye week: Limiting penalties was a major priority because they’re making things more difficult than they need to be. Stopping drives after converting first downs. Making situations more difficult on offense. Letting guys off the hook defensively with penalties extending drives or making more manageable third downs. Making things more challenging.

Penalties make for sloppy game you’re not proud to watch. Has impacted TOP. Need to get those things cleaned up. That’s probably the biggest thing.

Offensively, third down, and same on defense. Need to create more touches on offense for more players. It’s difficult to do that when you’re not extending drives. Explosiveness great on offense but need to be more efficient.

Opening statement

Unusual to have a bye this early in the season. Got a ton of recruiting done. Took care of guys with rest and recovery. Got depth guys some work. That was good.

Kent State and Kenny Burns this weekend. Kenny is familiar not only with Penn State not only at Kent State but at Minnesota with PJ Fleck. Tremendous opportunity for both programs. They’ve had challenges early this year but have seen some good things on tape they need to be ready for.

Offense: They’re RPO, tempo based out of the spread, mainly 11, mixing in 12. Impressed with No. 3 RB Thomas – Kansas transfer – and WR 0, WR 2. Guys they’re trying to get the ball to a number of ways.

Defense: So much respect for North Dakota State guys. Done a really good job. Four-down front. Variations of cover 4 and cover 6. Close the middle of the field with Cover 3 and Cover 1. Pressure 33 percent, spikes to 37 on third down. Impressed with DE No. 6, LB No. 8, and LB No. 4. DE No. 11.

Special teams: Another South Dakota guy. Probably their strength. Punt block return is 7th, kick return is 6th in the MAC. A lot of it deals with WR No. 0.

Had bye week Sunday practice. Although it’s game week, don’t have corrections to make or film to watch, so on the field longer than normal. Able to get some good work done.