Welcome back to another year of Mondays with Obviously, where this intrepid BSD poster does some summarizing of James Franklin’s weekly press conference. Want the full thing? Click HERE. Otherwise, here were some of the key points:
Opening Statement
Franklin thanked the press corps for returning to cover Penn State football for another season. He noted that the construction at Beaver Stadium looks good and that it, like his team, is ready for the season. He spoke a bit about Nevada, noting that they
have more than 50 new players in the program and how that’s becoming more commonplace in college football today.
Rotating Ross
Transfer receiver Devonte Ross has been dealing with injuries in the summer and into camp. Franklin said he’s now getting up to speed and that he’ll split reps with Liam Clifford.
Streamlining the Defense
Franklin was asked to reflect on an answer he had earlier in camp where he noted that schemes were installed, but there were still a lot of mental errors. Franklin said that’s pretty commonplace every year, but noted, talking more specifically about defense, how his team tended to narrow down what they were trying to do in game weeks based on what they do well and what their opponents do well.
Allar’s Improvement
Franklin gave a long, glowing answer about Drew Allar and his continued improvement at Penn State. He noted how Allar has improved as a leader, improved his speed and mobility, improved his rapport with receivers, etc. He said that Allar hasn’t improved in just one area, but in all ways. He also shared how Allar only has to take one class this semester to graduate.
A true strength this year
Franklin began a little early campaigning for his offensive line being one of the best in the country. He listed seven players as guys that he views as “starters” in terms of reps and workload (Shelton, Ioane, Dawkins, Rucci, Cousins, Donkah, Shanahan). He said they’ll work in different ways (formations and subbing) to get those guys on the field a lot.
Backup QB
Franklin said his staff would meet with his backup quarterbacks today to discuss the plan moving forward, but noted that he expected both underclassmen to continue the battle throughout the fall for the No. 2 spot.
Green Light
DE Chaz Coleman and CB Daryus Dixson will have green light designation from the start, meaning that they’ll be part of personnel packages on defense and especially special teams from the start. Franklin said there are other players who could wind up in that space as the season progresses.
A Surprise Safety Starter
Zakee Wheatley will be starting at one safety spot and there was a lot of competition opposite of him. Most believed that involved just Dejuan Lane and King Mack. But, turns out that Saturday’s starter will be Antoine Belgrave-Shorter. Lane and Mack will still play some, but Franklin pointed to Belgrave-Shorter being the camp leader in takeaways as helping him earn the spot.
The Returners
Mack and Nicholas Singleton will rotate at kickoff returner, while Ross, Trebor Pena, and Zion Tracy will handle punts.
Defensive End Talk
Franklin talked about the youth in the room, but said it’s a talented group. He went down the roster and mentioned five or six names that should see playing time. He did note that Zuriah Fisher, who has battled injuries throughout his career, has been in-and-out of practice in the fall.
Finding Depth
A lot has been said about Penn State’s non-conference schedule. Franklin said the plan is to use a lot of young players and to build depth and talented backups for later in the season, much as they’ve done during his entire tenure.
Green Dot
A lot of Penn State sites and accounts have been obsessed with the question about who will be wearing the “green dot” on defense for communication purposes. Turns out, it will be two linebackers. Both Amare Campbell and Dom DeLuca will have the capability to wear the dot during games. However, both can’t be wearing them at the same time on the field and the team is practicing that scenario.
The Nickel
Franklin was asked about depth at the nickel spot and who would play. He spent most of the answer talking about the progress that Zion Tracy has made and the good things that he did there last year. But, expect to see a lot of Colin Dinkins and Kenny Woseley getting reps, too.
Wide Receiver Talk
Though Ross was asked about early, it took until the very end to get a true wide receiver question aimed at assessing the whole room. Franklin mentioned six names – Kyron Hudson, Pena, Clifford, Ross, Tyseer Denmark and Koby Howard. It should be noted that Howard is a freshman and Franklin said that his performance on special teams would contribute to if he was changed to a “green light” player.
Obviously Count: 14 – 12 by James in his season opener.
