Penn State Football
Offensive Student-Athlete Quotes
vs. Ohio State – September 29, 2018
Will Fries | OL | Jr./So.
Q: Was it tough to see the game end with the ball not in Trace McSorley's hand?
A: You know, I think it doesn't matter who had the ball in their hands. Whoever has it, we trust them. The way it ended was surely tough, but we trust our guys and we have to get things done.
Q: Trace seemed to end every run moving forward trying to run through tackles. The smallest guy on your offense is doing that. What does that do setting the tone?
A: Trace, that's who is he. He's a leader. He's going to fight for every single yard. He's all about the details and that drives the whole offense. We all get behind him and he sets the tone and we follow.
Q: What did Trace [McSorley] say to you after the game?
A: He talked about the details. It comes down to one point two years in a row, and it's the details that matter in the end, like leaning up your locker area. Just doing all the little things right. Those things make a difference in the game.
Juwan Johnson | WR | Sr./Jr.
Q: What could you have done better?
A: I think I could have done a lot of things better. There were some balls up there that I could get, some blocks, some missed calls I could have picked up. Just be an overall leader. There were times out there when guys were down. One thing that I need to do better is just being that leader. Just step up and be a vocal leader and get those guys together so we can keep moving forward to the next play.
Q: How do you bounce back from this?
A: The details. This is my one point and it's tough and it hurts. The one thing we have to do is just come out and focus on the details. Focus on the little things. Get back to how we play and how we do things. That is just that simple.
Q: How hard is it chasing perfection? As close as you can possibly get, there seems to be the next step to being an elite team. Is that frustrating?
A: It is extremely hard. Chasing perfection is very hard. You are going to have a lot of bumps in the road, but the one thing you have to do is just remember that it is a walk and not a sprint. You know the whole saying, 'It's not a sprint, it's a marathon.' So, we have to take it easy, stay the course, and just let things happen. There are going to be bumps in the road but one thing we have to do is be resilient and come back and keep working.
Trace McSorley | QB | Gr./Sr.
Q: Is this about as tough of a defeat as you have had to deal with?
A: It's tough. I mean it's up there. Obviously, losing at home in an environment where you expect to come out and expect to win and expect to feed off of the crowd's energy and to not be able to win in this environment, it's tough. But I mean we have had tough losses before. A one-point loss last year and a lot of tough losses, so I mean it is definitely up there, but it is something that we got to grow from.
Q: James [Franklin] was really emotional in here, more emotional than we have ever seen him. How emotional was the locker room after the game?
A: It was very emotional. I mean it was one of those things where you lose by one point and everyone's mind immediately is 'What could I have done better?' It was a situation where we had an opportunity to win the game and we just weren't able to come through. I think that that is the biggest thing. People are just hurting over that stuff, but it is something that is going to hurt for the next 24, 36, 48 hours or whatever it may be, but we are going to have to come back and just learn from this, be critical of ourselves, and get better.
Q: James talked about the fact that you guys are a great team but aren't elite yet. Do you guys see it that way and what do you have to do to take that next step?
A: I think everyone needs to look at themselves honestly and try and figure out what they can do on a weekly basis to get better. If that's nutrition, sleep, hydration, whatever it is, getting extra treatment, more film, whatever it might be, to make up that difference and get from a good/great team we are right now and to make that next step is what coach is saying. I mean I agree with him that you have to be uncomfortable to make that step. If you are comfortable, you aren't going to grow. I think it is at the point where we have a lot of young guys and a lot of veterans that need to push themselves to be uncomfortable. We have to get to the point where you are making that growth. You have to push past that fear, that discomfort, that is what is going to get you there.
Q: On that fourth-and-five play call, was the original call the one that you ended up going with? What did you guys talk about during those timeouts there? Could you just take us through that fourth-and-five play and what you did?
A: I mean we got out there. We lined up the first time and they called a timeout after they saw a formation that we came out in. We came out and tried to get them to jump a little bit, see if we could get them to move. And then we just weren't able to make the play when it mattered. I mean fourth-and-five, I knew what Coach Rahne saw, I saw the same thing. The play was there to be made and we just didn't make it. They did a good job, they ran a twist, got into the backfield quickly. We weren't able to pick up that twist and they were able to hit Miles [Sanders] right when he got the handoff and get him down. I mean, I know that it is a deciding factor in the play and I agreed with what Coach Rahne saw, we just didn't make a play.
Miles Sanders | RB | Jr./Jr.
Q: Do you think that when those timeouts are called there is a chance to over think things?
A: Yeah, you can say that. We saw their front, how they came out and our look. When we see that we try and split it right through the middle. They did a great job switching whatever they were doing and had Chase [Young] coming through the middle.
Q: How does Ohio State's defensive front make it tough for you guys? It just seems like there was no space there for you.
A: They are a very good team. I think their defensive line is the heartbeat of their defense. They can really play. I have to give it to them, they played a really good game, but our offensive line played a good game too.
Q: How do you guys feel losing a two-score lead to them last year to them and this year to them and by losing by one each time?
A: It stings. This one is going to sting for a long time, but we are not going to let this kill us because we have a lot of ball left to play.
Q: I thought in the first half you guys had the opportunity to open up a double-digit lead, do you feel there were missed opportunities even when things were going pretty well?
A: Absolutely. We wish we turned those field goals into six points. At the end of the day, we beat ourselves up, honestly. We just have to continue to keep grinding and hopefully we will grow from this.