Penn State Football
James Franklin Postgame Press Conference
vs. Illinois – October 23, 2021
Q: The defense was on their heels the entire game, they go into overtime and they did a really good job. What adjustments mentally or physically did the team do at least defensively in those extra sessions?
A: I thought we played our tails off defensively, from a heart and from a mentality standpoint. Obviously, it wasn't good enough on the first down, where they were in second-and-short and third-and-short situations way too long. Their heavy sets gave us problems whether they just went with extra offensive linemen and created a long edge or they went unbalanced and created challenges for us. We stepped up and made plays at critical moments, but we had other opportunities on offense, defense, and special teams that could have made big plays to end the game and we did not correct.
Q: Where did you notice the most discomfort or rust, or things just being off in this game?
A: We just have way too many guys that played significant roles in that game that did not practice or did not practice full speed and full-go all week long. Practices are obviously really important and we had way too many guys miss, and Sean was one of those guys.
Q: Was there any point where [Sean Clifford] was struggling with his injury?
A: We felt like Sean gave us the best opportunity.
Q: How much did the run defense miss [PJ Mustipher]?
A: PJ has played a lot of football for us here and is a captain for us. He's been a tremendous player and a big part of our defense so not having him factored in, there's no doubt about it.
Q: At what point in the week were you pretty confident that [Sean Clifford] was going to be able to go?
A: We had confidence that it was going to happen, but we weren't sure. He got better every singe day. The feedback that we were getting from the trainers and the doctors and from Sean was that he'd be able to go today. Obviously, that's a day-to-day thing.
Q: Was [Sean Clifford] instructed not to run, was he limited in terms of his ability without a specific limitation that was placed?
A: No, but obviously we had to be smart. He was limited today, that's why we tried to mix the run and the pass in there to take some of that off him. Obviously, it's a big part of his game that he didn't have today.
Q: On Thursday night, you said you put a lot of time into the running game, during the bye week and this past week, and that you felt comfortable with it. Can you put your finger on why it wasn't quite clicking again this game?
A: Again, I think the combination of guys that did not practice, a combination of a wet day, the threat of the past not being there, a limited Sean, all of it factored in. You can't go from heavy pass to heavy run in one week. You got to be able to be mixed and be balanced, and we weren't able to do that today.
Q: Describe the problems with the overtime and just getting over the goal line.
A: Obviously, we were struggling on offense all day long. Those same issues showed up. In overtime periods, with the two point plays very similar to some of the issues that they had that our defense did a good job. Obviously, we didn't we didn't get the job done. I think it was nine overtimes, or whatever it was. There was plenty of plays and plenty of opportunities for us to end it, and either we did not execute, or we did not make plays when we had opportunities to do and that's on the offense and defense.
Q: What was your message to the team in the locker room after the game and as you guys get ready to move forward after this?
A: Probably the hardest part of my job is, after a tough loss, to stand to there in the locker room and give them what they need to hear at that moment. My natural inclination is to start coaching and go over the issues that we had today on the field. It's not the right time for it. We'll save that till Sunday. It's not my natural the way I'm kind of wired. So, it's the hardest part of my job standing up there in front of the team, the coaches, the trainers and obviously all the players and address those things after a tough loss.
Q: Sean took with what appeared to be a cheap shot. He was hunched over. Nobody came to his defense out there. Is that a meanness that's missing from the team, and would you like to see somebody come to defend your captain and quarterback?
A: What I'd like to do, if there's a late hit on the quarterback, I'd like for the officials to handle that. I don't want my players, if that's what you're asking that you want my players to come and retaliate. I don't know if that's the right thing. I don't really even understand the question, if that's what you're talking about. If you're asking our players to retaliate, we get a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
Q: Do you have much feeling about the NCAA overtime rule in general about the two-point play? What are your thoughts on that after being in the game this long?
A: I think the model was to limit these types of games and try to end it. I don't know if obviously this is a good representation of that because it didn't do that today.
Q: Illinois is a Big Ten team, and they had a rest just like you did. They had a bye. They really played hard, but this is arguably the worst team in the Big 10. Did you have your team ready to play this team?
A: Now, obviously, we did not have our guys ready to play. I think there was a difference between playing Iowa on the road and having that type of loss with the type of injuries we had going into our bye week. But at the end of the day, all that matters is we get the job done, and we did not today.
