Penn State Head Coach James Franklin Looks Ahead At Iowa Matchup
Penn State Head Coach James Franklin
During the 2023 weekly press conference at Penn State, Coach James Franklin talked about the upcoming “White Out” game against the Iowa Hawkeyes on September 23rd.
Penn State hosts over 100,000 fans on Saturday night against Iowa for one of the greatest atmospheres in collegiate sports. The Penn State White Out, is a spectacle that is beloved by the university, PSU alumni and CFB fans nationwide.
“This will be our 15th [full stadium] White Out, which is really cool,” said Franklin at the press conference. “First one was in 2007 against Notre Dame. We need the fans to arrive early and be loud, have a full stadium before kickoff. Very similar to what we did at West Virginia.
“We're welcoming CBS to Beaver Stadium for the first time since 1990. Trace McSorley and Grant Haley are honorary captains. They’re right now in the weight room getting a workout in. They're beloved in Penn State history, in my opinion. I know they are in our building.”
The Nittany Lions took care of business in its 2023 Big Ten opener, last weekend beating Illinois 30-13 in Memorial Stadium. Although it wasn’t always pretty, the No. 7 Lions had five defensive takeaways and a lack of offensive turnovers, Pin addition to implementing some backups late have a record of 3-0.
“You talk about the Illinois game, just some kind of thoughts on that game, some statistics we talk about every week,” Franklin continued. “We won the turnover battle, which is really the story of the game. We did not win the explosive play battle. We did not win the third down battle. The sack battle we did win. Drive/start battle we won. The penalty battle we did not win.
“Players of the game, on offense, Hunter Nourzad. On defense, we gave it really to all the turnover guys, Dom DeLuca caused the fumble, Kobe King, Abdul Carter, Daequan Hardy, Johnny Dixon and Cam Miller. Special teams was Malik McClain, who has really, really done a nice job and has been impressive on special teams. He is making an impact and a difference there, which is huge for us.
“D-squad players of the week, offense, Dom Rulli and Jake Spencer. Defense, Kolin Dinkins and Winston Yates. Special teams, Ethan Black.”
In this cross-division matchup, both teams have division title aspirations, and the winner will likely find itself in the middle of the early-season College Football Playoff conversation.
“Obviously, a ton of respect for the University of Iowa, their football program, the history and traditions there. Coach [Kirk] Ferentz has been there forever and done a phenomenal job. Guys that we've been impressed with, the running back, No. 4, Leshon Williams, running back, No. 9, Jaziun Patterson. Then a guy we're familiar with, the tight end, No. 83, Erick All.
“They are a base defense. They do what they do and they do it extremely well and have been doing it a long time. There's obviously some subtle changes, but whether it is 2023 or whether it's 2014, you put the tape on and it's Iowa playing Iowa defense the way they play it. Again, at a high level, been impressive.”
The Nittany Lions are the only team on Iowa's 2023 schedule currently ranked, which raises the stakes for the Hawkeyes.