Penn State coach James Franklin made his final pitch to Tyler Warren and took home all the honors after his all-out performance against Washington. The tight end rushed for two touchdowns, caught eight passes, attempted two passes (neither of which he completed) and generally wreaked havoc in the The Nittany Lions’ 35-6 victory over the Huskies. Warren also lost a fumble, but we’ll let that pass.
After the match, Franklin praised Warren, his team’s first half and the general nature of his resilience. And Washington coach Jedd Fisch explained why he switched quarterbacks at halftime. Here’s what the coaches said after Saturday night’s White Out at Beaver Stadium.
Penn State coach James Franklin
About the victory: In my opinion the match was won in third place. We were in third place with 77 percent, to their 30 percent. I think we started the game 7 out of 7 in the first half. …The sack battle, that was a dominant aspect of the game (Penn State had five sacks and allowed none). I thought our O-line, we didn’t give up a single sack in the game. Part of that was Drew (Allar) extending plays, but then our defense was able to get five sacks in the game.
Tyler Warren continues to make plays in a lot of different ways, and I’m proud of him for that. Jaylen Reed continues to make plays for us. Abdul Carter continues to make big plays at critical moments. So it was just really cool. And then the last thing I would say is that their defense was one of the best passing defenses in the country. I think they were the number two pass defense in the country, and we threw for over 220 yards. This season they have conceded 142 per game. And then of course we were able to protect the football. I think that’s one of the things Drew has done phenomenally over the last two years. He doesn’t get enough credit for that, but it’s impressive that he can protect the football, make great decisions and be accurate.
About Tyler Warren: So here I have a list of about 35 records that Tyler Warren has broken. I’m not going to go into them all, but he’s a very good football player. I don’t understand how this guy doesn’t win the Mackey Award and the Paul Hornung Award. I don’t see how he doesn’t. And they would be proud of that man who represents their prize, because he does everything right, both on and off the field. He’s been doing that since the day he stepped onto campus. So he’s just a great example of what a Penn State football player is.
On his team’s resilience after losing to Ohio State: In our locker room and in the Lasch facility and on our practice fields, we have a lot to be proud of, and that’s what we’re focusing on. We are focusing on making corrections and I am proud of my boys. I am proud of my employees and the way we work. We value winning, and if you watch college football anywhere in the country, it’s hard to win on a consistent basis. You see it every week, disruptions and things like that. That is why we attach great importance to winning. We respect winning and what it takes. And on Sunday we get back to work, in the Lasch building and on the Lasch practice fields.
On the status of running back Nicholas Singleton: As you know, I don’t deal with that kind of thing. You know, you’ll notice it when you come to practice (Wednesday). I don’t have much left. Usually after this I go in, shower and everyone is gone. I’ve finished my shower and (head coach) Andy Mutnan is waiting for me, and he talks about how we came out of the game and what the injuries were. We usually don’t have much information until the next morning. But as you can imagine, I usually don’t share that information with you.
On Penn State’s execution: I think the most important thing in terms of attack and defense is that we were able to maintain control first. On offense, we averaged seven yards per play in the first half. Defensively, we were able to stay in front of the sticks all night, and that can get you into advantageous third down situations. This allows you to push the ball across the field. This allows you to defend aggressively and go after the quarterback. So I think first down was a big factor in that game and how it played out.
About defensive end Abdul Carter: He is a disruptive footballer. That’s how he was when he played linebacker. He is disruptive when he plays defense. I still think there’s been an evolution there for him, in terms of playing the run consistently, rushing the passer consistently, getting good at his exit. He’s only getting better. That’s the exciting thing for me. He still has a lot of football ahead of him. He finds a lot of different ways to disrupt the game.
To involve the recipients more: Yeah, it’s great to get those guys involved. We want to do that every week. It’s really good to see Julian (Fleming) doing some things. Trey (Wallace) did some good things today, and we need more of that. We will continue to invest in that all week. But I’m really proud of our boys. I thought they played well tonight; I thought Trey’s catch on the sideline was a huge catch. We need those guys, so we will continue to invest in them.
Washington coach Jeff Fisch
On the decision to switch quarterbacks at halftime: We had (71) yards of offense, (59) yards of passing. It was 28-0 and we didn’t really get anything done other than the first stage. I thought it was an opportunity to give Demond (Williams Jr.) a chance to play the full half of football that he hasn’t had the opportunity to play. I thought he did some really good things in the second half.
On Washington’s offensive line: We kind of saw it at the start of the season as none of the offensive linemen were active in spring ball and we weren’t available to bring in players from the portal. When recruiting guys, we only had seven (offensive linemen) on the roster and two of them had ACL injuries on top of learning a new system. A lot of those guys didn’t have access to the weight room due to injuries and inexperience and I think this year and the upcoming offseason is a big weight year for them, just like Drew Azzopardi, a big weight year for those guys.
On the move from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten: Yes, this team was recruited as a primarily Pac-12 team. It’s a huge adjustment. The Big Ten is made up of many physical big guards and defenders. As we move further east and play these games, as you can see, the offensive and defensive lines are about 1,100 pounds heavier than ours. It’s hard, we just have to get more physical.
More Penn State football
What we learned from the Nittany Lions’ win over Washington
The Penn State defensive lineman is no longer with the program
Leave a Reply