Everything Penn State coach James Franklin said in his final press conference before Minnesota

Penn State coach James Franklin met the media for the last time before his team’s trip to Minnesota Wednesday evening. The first question he asked focuses on why he said Monday he doesn’t believe in the quarterback Drew Allar gets enough credit for the season he is having.

“Obviously, if I wanted to get into those details at this time or that time, I would have talked about it,” Franklin said. “But I’m not interested in getting into that right now.”

Next up was a question about the progress the second-year Nittany Lions cornerback has made so far Audvaion Collins.

“Yeah, he’s a kid that transitioned into the program, when he got here he was 165 pounds and he’s just embraced everything we’ve asked him to do,” Franklin said. “He works his tail off in the weight room, in training every day, has a big smile on his face and really just made a significant move in competitive periods during the spring and training camp.

“We felt like he was going to be in a position to help us this year. He’s just a kid that’s really brought up to believe that we’re asking our guys to do that. I think he’s enjoying it here and is one of those guys where he’s well-liked. As he continues to get opportunities and make plays, you’re going to see his role continue to grow. He’s so close to making some big plays for us . We’re big fans of his.”

Read everything else Franklin said Wednesday and watch video of his press conference below.

Tom Allen doesn’t get enough credit for how well the Penn State defense is playing

“I think what happens sometimes is, I don’t care what profession you’re in, depending on who you follow plays a role in how you’re perceived,” Franklin said. “He follows Manny Diaz and we had one of the best defenses in the country, so you come in here and I think defensively we were ranked somewhere between 2, 3 or 4, so unless you’re one, do “I don’t feel like you’re feeling much better.

“But I think he’s done a really good job of coming in here and adjusting. We have one of the best defenses in the country. I think our defense is our highest-rated unit. And nobody talks about that. I think he’s done a really good job, he’s been a head coach for a long time and coming back into the defensive coordinator role and the staff and the team has been great. Sticking with a lot of things that we’ve done, and then put your own stamp on it That. He probably had the toughest following. Give him a lot of personality and approach. But I think his whole defensive staff does.”

On why former Penn State center Ty Howle fits as a tight ends coach

“Well, first of all, he’s the son of a high school coach,” Franklin said. “So he knows ball. He loves ball. He studies it. So you look at his background, I think he has a chance to be a coordinator one day. He studies the game. And a lot of times coaches live in their world or their box , and they know their responsibilities, but they don’t know the rest of it. And he’s always been a student of the game. But I think the other thing is I’m a big fan of having the o-line coaches at the tight end position Because all these tight ends, they want to run routes and catch balls, and most of them did that in high school, but you need someone to develop them as a blocker as well.

“So I just think you can’t have enough o-line guys on your staff, you can’t have enough quarterback guys on your staff because they see the big picture. But that usually that’s the area where the tight end -coaches and tight ends in general are behind, are in the run game, because a lot of them are receiver guys or tight end guys, and it’s about what they do in the passing game.

“Very similar to my argument with all these awards. It’s just based on catches, you know? And if it’s the receiver’s award, I’ll get it, but if not, it’s got to be about being a complete tight end, and I think , that blocking is part of the job description.”

At Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter was a Lombardi Award finalist

“Yeah, he’s very, very disruptive and he’s got plays that flash,” Franklin said. “Whether or not you’re kind of a football player and someone who really studies the game, he’s got plays that really flash. But even if you’re not, he’s got plays that make you go, ‘wow, that’s an impressive play.’ I think it took him a while to get comfortable on the defensive line and specifically on the defensive end, but he’s a disruptive player.

“When you talk about tackles for loss, and you talk about sacks, and you talk about pressures, and you talk about offensive coordinators spending all week how they’re going to manipulate their protections to deal with him, he’s an impactful player.

‘The good thing is that he is on these lists for these prices. The bad thing is that none of these prices have adjusted to the new college football. And all these prices are still during the season where we all play. They want you to come to the awards ceremony, but we got practice so some of the awards have gone virtual, or they’ve moved the actual awards ceremony to after the season. I think a lot of these awards are going to have to look at that, and with the college football model changing, they’re going to have to change and adapt to it as well.”

On dealing with the portal and the early signing period in the midst of a playoff push

“This is where having a larger staff is helpful,” Franklin said. “I think there are a lot of arguments about people being able to see the size of the staff. I don’t know how you do today without it. But not only that, it’s not just the size. They have to be really, really qualified people. We are lucky here. We have a group of people who have been with us for a long time and they are working on those things. This is what they do 16 to 18 hours a day.

“So, you know, even signing day is going to be different, like we’re going to have signing day, and typically it’s the whole staff. (This year) it’s going to be me and the recruiting staff and the rest of the coaches to game plan and do all that kind of stuff. So we’ll take some time each week where me and those guys will organize it, and then we’ll include the coaches in the part of the conversation that they need to be a part of, but have it already organized and ready to go, then we are as efficient as possible.

“And then we typically try to do it at the end of the week, like a Thursday and Friday, when most of the game planning and everything is done. We try to do it then too, but it takes a lot of organization and vision and communication to make sure everyone is on the same page. And I hear that, and Andy Frank hears, and Kenny (Sanders) hears from our staff to make sure we’re formulating the best plan based on all the information we have.”

On the strength of the Big Ten and the Common Fisheries Policy’s narratives in 2024

“I think it’s interesting because there’s this battle going on right now out there, you know, as far as the narrative of college football, about who’s going to be in, right? We’ve talked about it before,” Franklin said. “It was four and everyone was arguing we should go to 12. We get to 12. And what happens? Everyone’s arguing that 14, 15, 16 is going to be messed up. And we were talking about the basketball tournament, right? Where how many is it? 69 and 70. So this is part of it. I mean, obviously worried about Penn State, and obviously I’m worried about the Big Ten. But I’m one of the few guys who’s been a head coach in both conferences.

Penn State practice notes: Offense | Defense

“And to me, the right thing to do is talk about the two best conferences in all of college football being the Big Ten and the SEC. And we should have the most teams in. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. I think where where it becomes problematic is when you have rules that certain teams and certain conferences have to get in and maybe people don’t feel like they’re actually in the top 12. So I get it.

“We’re fortunate. We’re part of the two conferences that I think everyone agrees are the two strongest conferences. I don’t think we need to take pictures in the Big Ten at the SEC because it’s been proven over time and I don’t think the SEC should take shots at the Big Ten. I don’t think there’s any argument there. And the reality is whether people’s feelings are hurt or not, these two conferences must have the biggest numbers and the biggest presence in the playoffs, because we’ve earned it all season.”

On how Penn State will handle the turnover-driven Minnesota defense

“The stats that we talk about week in and week out are the turnover ratio and the explosive play ratio,” Franklin said. “And those two things will be critical on Saturday. And with a team that does a really good job of turnovers, that’s going to be a factor. A major factor in the game. We’ve done a good job of protecting the football. It we will have to continue with.

“And the area that I think we can get better at, which I think we talked about a week or two ago, is that we create some of those turnovers as well. So, you know, I give PJ (Fleck) a lot of credit. He grew up a little bit like I did. You have to learn how to not lose games. And there are certain things that will make you hit it is to turn the ball over and it is to give up explosive plays and that’s not playing with a lot of effort.”