James Franklin postgame press conference quotes after Penn State lost to Michigan are depressing
By Ethan Lee
Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin spoke out after disappointing fans in a loss to the Michigan Wolverines.
The Penn State Nittany Lions underachieved yet again. While they were in a position to snag an upset win against the Michigan Wolverines, James Franklin’s team fell short and ultimately wasn’t able to beat the Wolverines at home.
Penn State started the season off hot with a solid 5-0 record, but the Nittany Lions have now lost four of their last five games. 10 games into a year, a 6-4 record is respectable for most programs, but Penn State should be competing for a Big Ten Championship Game appearance. That won’t be happening this year.
Here’s what Franklin had to say after the 21-17 loss to Michigan.
James Franklin press conference: Penn State Nittany Lions coach speaks after losing to Michigan Wolverines
When discussing Penn State’s struggles in the red zone and its general lack of explosiveness, Franklin had this to say:
James Franklin repeatedly points to failure to score red-zone TDs, once again tying in a season of ground-game struggles as a lingering issue they “need to work on”.
— Tyler Donohue (@TDsTake) November 13, 2021
“We don’t have enough explosiveness beside Jahan Dotson right now.”
Says Dotson wasn’t available for last play. pic.twitter.com/QBUiHfV1us
Franklin spoke about Penn State’s fairly controversial decision making late in the game:
Here’s James Franklin on the 4th and 2 playcall at the end of the game: pic.twitter.com/UT1izzeH5N
— Onward State (@OnwardState) November 13, 2021
And apparently, despite the way the play unfolded, Franklin is confident in the play call. He’s willing to make that choice again:
Penn State coach James Franklin on the fake field goal vs. Michigan: ‘I’d make the call again.’ pic.twitter.com/fYmIU49Cbo
— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) November 13, 2021
Franklin isn’t necessarily wrong here, the Nittany Lions do need more players to step up moving forward:
Franklin: “We have played hard but we haven’t made enough big plays… you take Jahan Dotson out and you don’t make enough big plays, explosive plays.”
— Collegian Football (@psufootblog) November 13, 2021
Penn State can’t afford to make mistakes against a team like Michigan. Unfortunately for Nittany Lions fans, that’s what happened Saturday:
Franklin: “You look at our side of the conference… the margin of error is small.”
— Collegian Football (@psufootblog) November 13, 2021
Franklin on better success blocking in passing situations than rushing: “They have two of the better defensive ends in the country.”
— Collegian Football (@psufootblog) November 13, 2021
This should seem obvious, but the Nittany Lions can’t afford to settle for field goals. Not against a team as good and well-rounded as Michigan:
Franklin: “In 2021 you need to score touchdowns.”
— Collegian Football (@psufootblog) November 13, 2021
Franklin is going to get plenty of criticism for the way Penn State played. While many thought he’d be a good fit for the USC Trojans, his team has failed to be consistent all season, and it’s not clear that he should really move up to a more prominent program that has even higher standards than Penn State does.
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