Tuesday Roundup: Penn State vs. Idaho
As Penn State gears up for its first game of 2019, head coach James Franklin, sophomore tight end Pat Freiermuth and senior cornerback John Reidaddressed the media to preview the season opener. Here's what we learned from Tuesday's media availability.
Sean Clifford
If you missed it last week, sophomore Sean Clifford was named the starting quarterback for the Nittany Lions. Following a competitive battle for the position, Clifford earned the starting spot based off experience and consistency. "For us, very similar to when we named Trace [McSorley] the starting quarterback, the experience factored in. You've got an older guy who played in games, and really had competed like crazy and done everything that he needed to do from the time the season ended," head coach James Franklin stated. "Will [Levis] is very, very talented and has got a very, very bright future. But I think when it's close like that, you're always going to go with the older, more experienced player, and that's really what Sean is and he has done a great job. Both of those guys have earned all the coaches' respect. Obviously, he's also earned all the players' respect, and Sean was also voted as a captain."
Clifford appeared in four games last season where he completed the first five passes of his collegiate career, including a school-record 95-yard connection with Daniel George against Kent State. The Ohio native threw for 195 yards and two touchdowns on seven passing attempts.
Depth of the Running Backs
An area of strength and consistent depth for Penn State has been the running back position. While that room will see its fair share of carries, James Franklin announced that Ricky Slade will be the number one guy to open the season. "We'll have a clear starter in terms of the first guy that goes out. Ricky has earned that for a lot of the same reasons that I talked about at the quarterback position," James Franklin said during his media availability. "One of the things that we do as well, and I don't know if we've talked about this before, the last couple years is when we come out with depth charts, and we come out with making decisions on who redshirts and who does not, we have the players rank them, which is, I think, a really good discussion."
Ricky Slade, Journey Brown, Noah Cain and Devin Ford headline this year's running back room.
Ranking System
One of the more interesting things we learned on Wednesday was the ranking by player system used within various position rooms. An idea that stemmed from cornerbacks coach Terry Smith, each player receives a magnet and ranks each player within their position group, just as the coaches do. "I think a lot of times, it's great information for the players, because I think a lot of times when it's just the coaches doing it alone, they will look at it and say, 'oh well' and be able to rationalize or justify whatever is going on," said James Franklin. "I think you should want your teammates to hold you accountable. You should want the coaches to hold you accountable. That's the only way that you're going to truly grow. I think it's been a nice little addition to what we're doing."
Game Information
No. 15/14 Penn State opens its 133rdseason against Idaho at 3:30 p.m. inside Beaver Stadium. The game can be found on the Big Ten Network or on the Penn State Sports Network. If you're attending the game, check Game Day Central on GoPSUsports.com for all your game day information.
