Penn State football notebook | Transition and preparation for Delaware

Penn State faces its first turnaround of the season after a 38-15 victory over West Virginia on Saturday and Delaware just days away.

With the quick transition from the Mountaineers to the Fightin’ Blue Hens, a ton of information swirled around the team.

Here are the main takeaways from media availability this week:

Takeaways from West Virginia

Head coach James Franklin opened Tuesday’s press conference with a quick review of the game and a new rule he didn’t expect to impact the game as much as it did.

“There’s been a lot of discussions about the clock and college football,” Franklin said. “I think for the average football fan or person, you probably don’t notice it a whole lot. For us, it did feel, I know sounds crazy, but it did feel dramatically shorter. Especially the first half seemed to flow ball fly by.”

Penn State’s head coach then highlighted Drew Allar, Curtis Jacobs and Malik McClain as the players of the week. He not only boosted about McClain’s performance on the field but also the impact that the transfer has had all offseason long.

“That guy has got a smile on his face all the time,” Franklin said. “I mean, literally all the time. In the weight room, walk around campus going to class. He’s done very well academically here and is trying to help the team be successful in any way.”

Franklin ended the review with the improvements he needs to see not only in-game but throughout the practice headed into Delaware.

“I think it’s great that we played so many guys, but the standard is still the standard,” said Franklin. “Did you play in a way that earn you more reps or less reps based on your performance? Finally, we got to create more turnovers through strips and fumbles and obviously have that consistency in the kicking game.”

Off the Field Scare

Penn State’s star sophomore linebacker, Abdul Carter, was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession on Tuesday. Police were called to Carter’s dorm early in the month due to a fire alarm that went off.

Carter has been a full participant throughout Penn State’s practice and season since the incident. Franklin commented after Wednesday’s practice that the team had known about the situation for some time.

“We don’t talk about those things publicly,” Franklin said after Wednesday’s practice. “Obviously, it’s being handled and dealt with internally. This is new to you guys. It’s not new to us.”

Tight End Involvement

After Tyler Warren and Theo Johnson were targeted a combined three times throughout Saturday’s matchup, Franklin has talked about their involvement in the offense all week.

“We have a plan to get the ball to our playmakers every week, but then, once you get to the game, you’re going to take what the defense gives and not force the ball to any players,” Franklin said at his Tuesday’s press conference.

On Wednesday, Franklin continued to state that the coaching staff’s main goal was to create a balanced offense between tight ends, receivers and running backs.

“It’s hard to say if the tight ends are gonna, not gonna be a factor in the game,” Franklin said on Wednesday. “There’s a lot of different ways that we’re using, but we’d like it to be a little bit more balanced.”

Praise in the Backfield

Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries throughout the season opener. Franklin was so impressed with the on and off-the-field production from Allen that he praised his performance on Tuesday.

“I just want to make sure that our fans and everybody that follows Penn State closely knows how fortunate we are and how blessed we are to have Kaytron in our locker room,” Franklin said.

Franklin continued with how much the two stars have meant to the team and the impact that they have left on the program.

“We are blessed to be one of these programs that has two backs that are two of the better backs in all of college football, and we’d recognize that, and we’re appreciative of that,” Franklin said.

Delaware

As Penn State faces its first turnaround of the season, Franklin noted a few aspects of the game that make Saturday’s game so special.

“This Saturday is our THON game that will also be welcoming back and honoring the 1973 undefeated team celebrating their 50th anniversary,” Franklin said.

Franklin went on to finish his Delaware preview during Tuesday’s conference with a look into the Fightin’ Blue Hens offense.

“Ryan Cardi also is a head coach with an offensive coordinator background…they’re an RPO spread style offense,” said Franklin. “Their pass game is vertical you and movements. But in my mind, I expect us to see a ton of quick games, a ton of screens and a ton of move pocket type stuff.”

Micheal Bolger is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email mpb6233@psu.edu.