Manny come back! Penn State fans already want James Franklin to fire Tom Allen ASAP
By Scott Rogust
The Penn State Nittany Lions had the best start to the 2024 season that they could have hoped for. The team beat the West Virginia Mountaineers 34-12 behind a three-touchdown performance by quarterback Drew Allar. Penn State's defense played a huge role in that win, holding West Virginia to just 246 yards of offense.
That was the first game with Tom Allen as Penn State's defensive coordinator. Allen had previously been the head coach for the Indiana Hoosiers from 2017 until 2023. Allen was brought in by head coach James Franklin to replace Manny Diaz, who after a successful two-year tenure left to become the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils.
Allen would surely have the Nittany Lions ready to stop the offense of the MAC's Bowling Green Falcons, right?
Well at halftime, Penn State trailed Bowling Green 24-20. Whie that is concerning enough, it's the amount of yards they gave up in the first half. Specifically, Bowling Green gained 288 yards of total offense through two quarters.
Penn State fans call for DC Tom Allen's job after dreadful first half vs. Bowling Green
Let's just say that Penn State fans weren't happy with the defense's showing in the first half. So much so, that they took to message boards to call for Allen's job.
#PennState is now down 17-7. #FireEverybody pic.twitter.com/Smvm27ZvA9
— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) September 7, 2024
Perhaps what stings that much for for the Nittany Lions is that Franklin hyped up the defense this past Monday. Specifically, Franklin said that the defense wasn't being talked about enough.
Five days later? 288 yards surrendered in the first half against a team from the MAC.
On Monday, James Franklin said not enough people were talking about the Penn State defense.
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) September 7, 2024
Today, many are talking, but not for positive reasons. Bowling Green with 288 yards already.
Bowling Green took a 17-7 lead after two passing touchdowns from Connor Bazelak and a 33-yard field goal by Jackson Kleather. Even though Penn State tied things up at 17 points apiece, Bowling Green retook the lead on a 41-yard run by Jamal Johnson.
As for what Diaz is up to, he has currently led Duke to a 2-0 start to the season after defeating Northwestern 26-20 in double overtime on Friday night.
There's still a lot of season left and with an expanded playoff, Penn State will still have a chance to contend for the CFP National Championship. But the fanbase wants better from the defense and its coordinator.
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