Penn State head coach James Franklin press conferece: Villanova week

The Penn State Nittany Lions football team faces off against Villanova on Saturday to conclude its 2025 nonconference season. The team is in mid-week preparations for the game and head coach James Franklin met with the media on Wednesday evening after practice to update fans on how the team is progressing. Hear his complete comments on the Blue White Illustrated YouTube Channel, or here, embedded in this article. 

The team is 2-0 and coming off a 34-0 win over FIU last week in a game that was within three scores until very late in the fourth quarter. 

Penn State head coach James Franklin press conference

Big plays have been the talking point of the team’s first two games of the season. Head coach James Franklin was asked about it again on Wednesday evening when discussing the young receivers who haven’t made it into the game with the starting lineup yet this year. He says Tyseer Denmark is doing the right things behind the scenes.

“He’s got a toughness to him that I think is really important at the wide receiver position. He’s got really confident, strong hands, and he’s preparing and going about it the right way, with the right energy to your point. So, you know, I think we have a lot of confidence when we need to put him in the game, and when he gets his opportunity, I think he’s going to be ready, you know. So he’s approaching it the right way.”

Game week coverage

Next up, we’ll recap practice on the BWI Live Recruiting Show, coming up Thursday morning at 10 a.m. Join the show to hear our discussion about the team’s recruiting plans for the upcoming bye week and what we can expect for the 2025 White Out on Sept. 27. 

We’ll also have more coverage of the team’s upcoming game against Villanova all week long at Blue White Illustrated. Then, kick off your gameday festivities with the Penn State Football Tailgate Show, airing at 12:30 from outside the Bryce Jordan Center Ticket Office. We’ll break down what we’ve learned about the team’s positional depth battles through the first two weeks of the regular season and preview what sort of looks and work the team has left to do against Villanova. You can watch the show live on the Blue White Illustrated YouTube channel, or locally on 99.5 The Bus. The Tailgate Show is produced in conjunction with Seven Mountains Media. 

Then, after the game, check out all of our postgame content, including Instant Analysis from our reporters at Beaver Stadium, James Franklin’s postgame press conference, and the Labatt Postgame Show.