Watch PSU coach James Franklin's press conference following Peach Bowl
By Ryan Snyder
Atlanta — Penn State wasn’t able to finish its 2023 season the way it had hoped, losing to Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl Saturday, 38-25.
Coming into today, the Nittany Lions were expected to be without both cornerback Johnny Dixon and defensive end Chop Robinson. We then learned they’d also be without cornerback Kalen King and offensive tackle Olu Fashanu when the Big Ten’s availability report was released about two hours before the game.
Penn State head coach James Franklin said after the game that the combination of key players missing and multiple coaching changes impacted his team.
“Just too many moving parts with the staff and with the players against a good team,” he said. “Too many moving parts, staff and players, to have the type of success that we wanted to have today.”
With both starting cornerbacks not playing, Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart completed 25 of 40 attempts for 379 yards passing and three touchdowns. The Rebels totaled 540 yards of offense overall, which was by far the most Penn State allowed this season. In addition to star wide receiver Tre Harris totaling seven receptions for 134 yards, the Lions also struggled to contain tight end Caden Prieskorn. He finished the game with 10 receptions for 136 yards and two touchdowns.
Takeaways: Penn State hurt by opt outs, receiver problems continue, more
Penn State’s offense finished the game with 510 yards, although 217 of those yards came in the fourth quarter when the Lions were down by multiple scores. Quarterback Drew Allar completed 19 of 39 attempts for 295 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Beau Pribula also threw for a touchdown, completing a 48-yard pass to running back Nick Singleton at the end of the second quarter.
The lack of production at wide receiver was a key storyline throughout the season and that was once again the case Saturday, with tight end Tyler Warren leading the way with five receptions for 127 yards. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that Penn State completed a pass to its wide receivers.
“I actually thought during the bowl period that [the wide receivers] had a really good bowl period,” Franklin said. “I thought that was a big part that we were excited about and we made a big deal about with the team.
“It’s a combination of things. I think we’re really good at tight end. That’s part of it. Then we’ve got to be able to make sure that we translate what we do in practice consistently to the games.”
