Penn State open practice roundup: James Franklin press conference and highlights
Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke with the media for just over ten minutes after the team’s Wednesday evening practice. He touched on the offensive and defensive progress through three weeks and explained his reasoning behind his comments about the Penn State offensive line during Big Ten Media Day.
More discussion about the Penn State offensive line
For his part, the Penn State head coach thinks that his comments were misinterpreted by some who think that it was a negative way to paint his young players,
“I think what I said, I don’t think comes off as negative. I don’t think it comes off as positive. It’s measured. I have felt good in years past and we haven’t been able to consistently play at the level that we need to play at. It wasn’t like this big comprehensive plan in the offseason and in the summer to not talk about them. I just said I’m not I’m not going to get up here again and tell you. I’m going to prove it to you. And they’re going to prove it to you.”
He also discussed how the offense can be more cohesive this season and how the young players “hit a wall” during the second week of camp with scheme installation. He also commented on the progress that transfer Mitchell Tinsley has made this offseason. Of course, Penn State’s young running backs came up during the second week of camp as well,
“They’ve been really good. Really, both of them have been. Obviously, there have been a lot of conversations about Nick Singleton, but him and Kaytron [Allen], there is a buzz within our program about those two guys and what they’re doing. I know Sean’s really excited about it. I know the young quarterbacks are really excited because they’re gonna have more time with them.”
Open practice highlights
Blue White Illustrated was also on hand to see the open portion of Penn State practice and get a view of which players were standing out in individual drills. Today’s look at practice focuses on the offensive and defensive lines.
We start with the defensive line where PJ Mustipher and Adisa Isaac appear. Both players are returning from injury this offseason, but are participating in fall camp. Joining them are Penn State freshmen Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zane Durant. Meanwhile, Hakeem Beamon and other young players get a quick feature.
After a quick two-play goal-line series, we shift to the offensive line. Both tackles, Olu Fashanu and Caedan Wallace, looked good in run-blocking drill. In fact, offensive line coach Phil Trautwein said they are the best tackles he’s worked with in his career. Check out the full video for more details.
