Penn State head coach James Franklin met with the media on Tuesday evening in Phoenix following he Nittany Lions College Football Playoff quarterfinal win over Boise State with a 31-14.
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OPENING STATEMENT
So first of all, like always, I want to thank especially the Penn State media that come out and follow us all the time and cover Penn State football.
We appreciate you. I want to thank the fans. It's a long season and our fans, the support that we get and how they travel is phenomenal.
Obviously also good being on the West Coast and maybe some of our fans that don't normally get a chance to see us live, so that's special. I want to give Boise a ton of credit. I think that's a really, really good football team.
They've been winning there for a long time. Coach Danielson's done a phenomenal job and obviously could go on and on about their players. We talked a lot.
These guys were sick of me talking about their running back, Ashton Gente. A 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. Complimentary football. Did some special things tonight.
So I'm just proud of our guys. We talked in the beginning of the season about our guys having these type of moments and these type of experiences and these type of opportunities. So 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 things I'll say and then I'll open up the questions, but 13 wins. First time in program history. Katron Allen and Nick Singleton both surpassing 1,000 yards in the same season.
First time we've ever had 2,000 yard rushers in the same season since joining the Big Ten. And 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 that they have shown has been impressive. So 8-0 in Fiesta Bowls.
Penn State loves the Fiesta Bowl. We'll come every year. So appreciate it.
On the effort from the Penn State running backs
Well, a couple things. Everybody wants to talk about their running backs, 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.
And we talk about O-line tight ends, obviously the running backs. That's Katron. Katron breaks tackles.
He runs people over. He is a physical, physical back. And then Nick, obviously, if you give him a crease, he's 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. And when we're able to get the outside zone going like we were able to do today, it kind of opens everything else up and gets people running side-line to side-line, which creates creases.
But I'm happy. Nick was grinding it out, grinding it out. Wasn't having as much success, then all of a sudden he was able to break the big one, which was huge.
So you love to see that happen. And then, like I said, Katron is just a workhorse. So 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. Right here on the end, front row.
On Penn State's approach to dealing with Ashton Jeanty
I mean, he got 100 yards, but sort of corral him? Well, I think we did corral him. Not sort of.
I think we did corral him. I mean, they got some yards there at the end. And I think defensively, I think our team was sick of me talking about them.
And 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. And 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. I thought our D-line did a really good job of being disruptive and getting in the backfield. And then I thought we did a really good job ganging tackle.
There was a few times where we didn't wrap like we should have, but for the most part, our defense played lights out. And 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 him earn it today. And I think the other thing that our guys had heard about is the records that he had a chance of breaking today, too. So it was a highly motivated group.
On Abdul Carter's status
Yeah, with Abdul, I don't know a whole lot. We'll get that checked out and see. And obviously, number one, the safe 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. And we'll find out more. I don't have a whole lot more information than that.
On how their season thus far helped them when it comes to a tough game like Tuesday's quarterfinal
in terms of being tested, yeah, I think the Big Ten, I think you guys have heard me say this a lot. I've been a head coach in the SEC. I've been a head coach in the Big Ten. And I've got tremendous respect for both conferences.
And 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 a 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. And I think those things are valuable. I think 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. And it's been that way for a long time.
So, I think these guys will tell you, we were not taking them lightly. I know they got off the plane with those shirts, count us out. We were not counting those guys out.
They had our attention. And I think that showed up today. But I think, we talk about the maturity of our football team.
And I think that shows up. When things don't go well, our guys, they don't panic. The coaches don't panic.
We learn from it. And then we get on to the next play. And 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. And you just got to weather the storm and battle back.
How important is postseason success for the Big Ten important for the reputation of the conference?
Yeah, I mean, obviously we want to represent the Big Ten. And that's important to us. But ultimately, I'm worried about Penn State.
I'm worried about Tyler Warren and Zachy and Penn State and the guys in that locker room. I want them to have an unbelievable college experience and I want them to go on and have a chance to reach their dreams. That's my focus.
I've got respect for coaching the SEC because I've been there. I take a lot of pride in representing the Big Ten. 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.
And then sometimes it feels like all the media and people on blogs, I feel like I work for them sometimes too. But I just, I don't spend a whole lot of time on that. I'm focused on our guys.
On Drew Allar's perforamnce
I feel like they were NFL throws.
Some of these balls were going really high in the air, coming down right into the receiver's bread basket. Talk about his confidence level playing in games like this, letting it rip. I feel like I've seen a different kid than we saw in the last couple years.
It seems like his confidence has really taken a next step. Yeah, they get better, right? Last year was the first year of starting and won a bunch of games and did some really good things. His touchdown to interception ratio is phenomenal.
Obviously when this guy gets turnovers and puts the ball back in the offense's hand, this guy, more times than not, you can just chuck it up to him and he's going to come down with it. But Drew makes big time throws. He's a big bodied kid.
He's able to make plays with his feet, which I think has been a huge part of his development and our offense's growth. Drew's had a phenomenal college career and I think it's only going to get better. And we're going to need that.
But yeah, makes big time 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 was a ton of penalties in this game, really for both teams.
So we made it a little bit harder than it needed to be.
On Penn State's 1-0 mantra
Yeah, so, obviously I wouldn't say it's overly unique, but I'm a big believer in being present. I think, one of the things I just got on the guys in the locker room, a bunch of guys are on their phones, and I get that that's this generation now. Twitter, Instagram, whatever it may be.
I get it. But what I do know is P.J. Mustipher, and Jesse Luketta, and 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.
That's what 1-0 is all about. 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's going off, pushing the phone away, and being present.
I know I gotta be better about that. It's just an important trait and quality that I think you have to have, and I think it can 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, and we understand the importance of certain games.
I get it. But there'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, and 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, and as you know, I'm a big believer in routine, and I'm a big believer in consistency, and consistency in message, and I think 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 Penn State's rushing attack over the last several games
He (Kaytron Allen) ran about as angry as I've ever seen him run. How important is that to the success of this season, but also just moving forward because you've done it against some good teams? Yeah, running game and defense travels. That's going to show up throughout a season.
That's going to show up in bad weather. That's going to show up when you're trying to run four minutes. There at the end of the game, there was a lot of time left and we went four minutes.
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.
When you're able to run the ball, it is a powerful thing at this point in the season. We want to be able to rely on that. It also sets you up in your play action passes as well and makes them more explosive.
Being able to run the ball and being able to control the line of scrimmage, whether it's your offensive line or our defensive line, is critical. It showed up tonight and to your point, it's really kind of showed up all season.
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