UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State is coming off a dominant White Out shutout against Iowa which featured the Nittany Lions allowing the fewest number of total yards in the James Franklin era.
The 31-0 defeat over the Hawkeyes propelled Penn State's defense to first in the country in total defense and pass defense, allowing 219.5 yards per game and 138 passing yards per game.
The Nittany Lions have the highest turnover margin in the country at plus-11 and have allowed the fewest number of first downs. A resilient Northwestern squad is on tap for Saturday at noon on Big Ten Network and head coach James Franklin took questions from the media Tuesday.
Playing Complementary Football
Penn State leads the nation in time of possession and has put a key focus on controlling the ball. The Nittany Lions are the only FBS team that has not turned the ball over this season.
Franklin put an emphasis on "do not get bored with grinding this game out" during halftime of the contest with Iowa. That mantra has spread throughout the offense as gritty and hard-nosed drives have been the recipe for success.
There has been a balance between the "grind it out to win" message from Franklin and using explosive plays to score. There's also a reciprocated relationship between offense and defense that leads to diligent drives.
"One of the things that's really cool is in our team meetings, Mike [Yurcich] gets up and talks and Manny [Diaz] gets up and talks and Stacy [Collins] gets up and talks because when we're talking about football and we're teaching situational football or talking about how we played, one of the things that's been important I think is Mike talking about how the defense helps our offense, and Manny talks about how the offense helps our defense," Franklin said.
Beau Becoming Balanced
Redshirt freshman quarterback Beau Pribula has appeared in all four games this season and already has three touchdowns to his credit. Pribula's volume has proven efficient and effective as he adds a new dynamic to the Nittany Lions offense.
Franklin called Pribula "steady Eddie" and recognized that the York, Pennsylvania, product could be a valuable place in sporadic situations. Pribula manages his emotions well and brings a level of confidence to the offense whether working with the one's or the two's.
Franklin shared that there are more elements for Pribula to grow his game and continue to develop as a more multidimensional quarterback. Franklin recognized Pribula's preparedness and a player someone opposing teams need to have a focus on.
"We'd like to get him involved more in a situation where he can actually run our offense because I think right now, he's being used primarily as a runner, but we feel like we can run the whole offense with him," Franklin said. "But a lot of that is because it's borderline four-minute offense, as well, and it's something he also does well. So, it kind of allows us to do both, gain a hat in the run game, four-minute, and play to one of his strengths."
Consistency is Key
Being able to find consistency from week-to-week is a foundational aspect for Penn State as the signature '1-0 mentality' has been bought into by everyone.
Franklin said "leaving the practice field feeling great" is what allows Penn State to perform at the highest level on Saturday. For Franklin, it's all about taking care of business the other six days of the week.
Franklin praised redshirt sophomore linebacker Dominic DeLuca as someone who embodies consistency as former players John Reid and John Sutherland left "a legacy" of what it means to be consistent.
"Why has Dom DeLuca been so successful? I think he's an example of a guy that is super consistent with his approach," Franklin said "I remember back to John Reid, a super-mature guy who was very consistent; John Sutherland, a guy that was super consistent with his approach. I think those guys leave a legacy. John Reid learned from somebody; Sutherland maybe learned from John Reid. Our guys now learn from Sutherland and so on and so forth."
