Skip to main content
penn-state logo

Penn State Head Coach James Franklin Press Conference: Ohio State

Headshot 5x7 reduced qualityby:Thomas Frank Carr•10/17/23•

ThomasFrankCarr

james-franklin-press-conference-ohio-state-newsletter

Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke with the media on Tuesday ahead of his team’s clash with the third-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. Check out Franklin’s comments moments after the conclusion of his press conference on the Blue White Illustrated YouTube Channel or here on the site. Franklin also spoke about his team’s win over UMass to wrap up last week’s game. 

Franklin praises Daequan Hardy for breakout performance

As Franklin typically does, he starts his press conference with a recap of the previous game. Also, Franklin handed out players of the week awards for all three phases of the game. The obvious choice for the Nittany Lions this week was punt returner Daequan Hardy. Hardy returned his first punt return of the year for a touchdown and followed it up with another one in the second half. The first return sparked a scoring spree by Penn State that didn’t end until the final whistle. Offensively, the player of the game was tight end Tyler Warren, and defensively, Adisa Isaac earned top billing. 

Franklin previewed Ohio State and highlighted the top players. All of the names are household names in college football. 

“It starts with Marvin Harrison… tremendous player. Treyveon Henderson and Cade Stover; I don’t think he (Stover) gets enough credit for what he does,” Franklin said.

Drew Allar the main focus

But the main story of Tuesday’s press conference was quarterback Drew Allar. The Ohio native is playing in his home state for the first time in his young career against the Buckeyes. Franklin was asked about how Penn State identified him so early. While Franklin dives into that answer, he discusses the transformation that Allar underwent to go from a middling prospect into a five-star player.

“His transformation, I’ve never seen a transformation like it. I’ll be honest, I didn’t really believe it. I have always felt that you can change a quarterback from their footwork and timing and their pre-snap understanding of the defense. That’s really where you can help quarterbacks, especially at the college level.

But Brad’s ability, with Drew’s commitment and work ethic, his transformation is crazy. And that just continued; he just kept getting better,” Franklin explained

Penn State seems healthy heading into key matchup

Unlike last season, Penn State is relatively healthy heading into the showdown against Ohio State. Wide receiver Trey Wallace returned to the lineup last week and immediately impacted the offense. The redshirt sophomore caught three passes for 44 yards, with 24 of those yards coming after the catch. The lone notable situation is left guard JB Nelson. The 6-5, 334-pound offensive lineman was carted off the field against Northwestern in the first half and hasn’t been seen at practice or in games since. As usual, Franklin declined to give an update about his status beyond his previous non-statement when asked if it was a season-ending injury.

Want to get more from Blue White Illustrated before the big game? Join now; new members will get 50% off the yearly subscription price. Access premium articles, recruiting information, and reporting that you can only access as a member.  

You may also like