James Franklin shares thoughts on potential Penn State-Ohio State rematch in CFP

Penn State football is looking to “flush” Saturday’s loss to Ohio State and move on to Washington. However, the Buckeyes were still the dominant topic of conversation when James Franklin took the microphone to address reporters on Monday afternoon.

Although ready to put the weekend’s 20-13 defeat in the past, multiple Nittany Lions starters expressed a desire to meet Ohio State on the field again this season in the 48 hours since the loss. Any potential rematch would most likely occur in the College Football Playoff.

We will see them again I promise… WE WILL BE BETTER, STAY TOGETHER!!
it’s a long Season!😉 #WE are

— Abdul Carter (@1NCRDB1) November 2, 2024

“We’ll hopefully get another chance to see those guys again and make things different,” Kobe King said Saturday. “To go where we want to go, we just got to get everything right, get better every day, and learn from our mistakes from the past.”

Franklin discusses potential Penn State-Ohio State rematch

© Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

During his weekly press conference, James Franklin was asked if a potential rematch with Ohio State was part of his postgame message to his players, and if he takes issue with several of the team’s leaders openly discussing a second game with the Buckeyes.

“I’m totally good with those guys speaking how they felt at the moment. I’m totally fine with that,” Franklin said. “I’m totally fine with them having enough confidence and having enough grit and determination and anger at the moment that they want a second shot.

“In today’s college football, that’s a reality in ways that it probably hasn’t been in the past. It wasn’t my message in the locker room, but there were people talking about it. I’m totally fine with that. What the message is, the way I interpret the message is, that we want to play well enough to continue playing as a team and as a family as long as we possibly can.

“Again, in today’s college football, those things that you just said, they’re possible. They’re realistic. Which I also think is probably cool about college football now, where that wasn’t the case in the past. You would have to wait a full calendar year, depending on the schedule. So, yeah, I think that’s a cool thing for college football.”

We will know where Penn State football stands in potential positioning for a round two with the Buckeyes when the first College Football Playoff rankings are released on Tuesday evening. The Nittany Lions fell to No. 6 and No. 7 in the AP and Coaches Polls this week, respectively.

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