Penn State coach James Franklin sets Blue-White Game priorities
The priority for Penn State head coach James Franklin on Saturday is straightforward.
Welcoming fans to Beaver Stadium, the Nittany Lions are eager for the opportunity. But, with another four months to go until opening the 2022 season at Purdue, one objective outweighs all others.
“Number one is always to stay healthy,” Franklin told BTN host Mike Hall on Tuesday.
Joining Hall for a 15-minute interview with the BTN, Franklin went on to explain why.
In a shifting landscape of college football, rules changes to name, image, and likeness and the transfer portal have created a massive disruption. As a result, Franklin was asked whether or not the traditional model of a “spring game” should be changed.
Given the precedence placed on remaining healthy, and the ongoing desire to maintain fan engagement and interest, Hall floated the notion of potentially replacing an intra-squad scrimmage with that of an FCS opponent.
In that light, Franklin explained that the very nature of spring football has been changed.
“The transfer portal has changed things,” Franklin said. “You look around the country, a lot of people’s depth is not what it normally is during spring ball. So that has definitely played a factor into it.
“There were conversations about possibly playing FCS, or what we used to call I-AA opponents, especially from a regional perspective. I think you could make that argument that could be a good thing for college football.”
Penn State coach James Franklin BTN interview
Those conversations aren’t the priority for Penn State this spring, however.
Acknowledging the Nittany Lions’ ongoing depth issues, Franklin offered his first insight into what the Blue-White Game might look like in four days. While still aiming to get as close as possible to a game-like experience, Franklin said the event could look somewhat differently.
“For us, we’ve always tried to play a game, split the team up,” Franklin said. “We have some depth issues this spring that make that a little bit more challenging, so we’ll probably be a little bit more offense versus defense this spring game, but hopefully still get a lot out of it.”
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Among those byproducts, Franklin narrowed in on a few areas of keen interest both to Penn State fans and the Nittany Lion coaching staff.
Wrapping up a 15-practice session that began on March 21, the position groups that took center stage then will continue to be a focal point.
“Having an opportunity to continue to evaluate our roster, the quarterback position, running back position, some of our young linebackers that need a bunch of reps,” Franklin said. “We want to continue to be able to evaluate our roster, stay healthy, and then be able to go into the offseason with a really good idea of where we’re at.
“I’ll set up individual meetings with all the players, give them the feedback that they need to work on, and the coaches will all hit the hit the road recruiting.”
