WATCH: James Franklin evaluates Penn State football after surviving upset vs Bowling Green

Penn State football was pushed to the brink on Saturday, squeaking out a 34-27 win over Bowling Green in the home opener. It took James Franklin and the Nittany Lions every bit of four quarters to put away their MAC opponent, not taking the lead for the first time until the 6:13 mark in the third quarter.

“Most importantly, you got to give Bowling Green a ton of credit,” Franklin said after the game. “We talked about it during the week. The last three years, they beat Minnesota. They beat Georgia Tech. Michigan last year, was 14-6 at the half. [The program has] 32 seniors, and you got to give them credit.

“They played their tail off. The moment wasn’t too big for them. The opening drive showed that, and we were at a dogfight. So, got to give them a ton of credit.”

After shutting down the West Virginia offense last week, the Nittany Lions’ defense was pushed to the limit by Bowling Green Saturday. Penn State football allowed 375 total yards, 286 of which came in the first half.

“I know I’m gonna give the answer that you guys hate, but it’s hard for me to really say that right now without watching the tape,” Franklin said on the defensive improvement in the second half. “No different than when I learned a long time ago as a head coach after a win like that, we talk about being 1-0 and being positive and being appreciative of the wins. And wins are hard to get in college football. [We talk] of not going in there and starting critiquing after a win, and for really the same reasons.

“I don’t want to say something that’s not totally accurate without watching the tape yet. But  I think the biggest thing in the second half, like I already mentioned, on defense, we were more efficient on first down, which created second-and-long and created third-and-long situations. We were ahead of the sticks. The whole first half, we weren’t.

“I think what happens early on, and it’s happened for the last couple years, and we got to look at this: I think early on, we’re trying to make plays rather than play the defense. Getting out of our gaps, trying to make plays, doing things that we haven’t done during a week. We got to get those things cleaned up, for sure.”

James Franklin discusses impact of star Penn State football defender’s first half exit

© Alex Disabella / Basic Blues Nation, 2024.

One of the most significant storylines coming out of Saturday’s game is the status of safety KJ Winston. The Nittany Lions star defensive back went to the sideline in the second quarter after coming up slow on a tackle of Bowling Green tight end Harold Fannin. He did not return to the field.

James Franklin spoke on the impact of Winston’s absence postgame.

“I can’t get into KJ Winston and why he wasn’t in there. You guys know I don’t talk about those things,” he said. “But it obviously increased the amount of reps, you know, for Jay Reed and increased the amount of reps for Zakee [Wheatley], and also kind of changed our ability to be able to get into the package where Jay Reed is playing the Lion position.

“So we needed to be in base a little bit more. It’s hard to get in Prowler if they don’t substitute on third down, which is what a lot of people are doing. They won’t substitute on third down so that we can’t get our Prowler on the field, which is our rush package, which is a smart plan, right? Smart plan. 

“So those are some things that we’re gonna have to work on, specifically during the bye week. Those will be important.”

You can watch all of the postgame comments from James Franklin on the Basic Blues Nation YouTube Channel.

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