Penn State head coach James Franklin yells during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Minnesota on Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abby Parr)
MINNEAPOLIS – It’s time to give a little credit where it’s due.
James Franklin’s body of work has been impressive during his 11 years at the helm of the Nittany Lions.
He is particularly adept at the many aspects required of a highly successful coach in high-profile soccer, including recruiting, program development, representation, communication, and vision.
Game management? That’s another story.
Franklin’s teams have shown a troubling tendency to pick the wrong play at the wrong time and pay the ultimate price, especially in the biggest moments against the biggest opponents.
That wasn’t the case on Saturday.
The Nittany Lions escaped with a 26-25 victory over Minnesota as Franklin pressed the button at key moments and completely won the sideline battle with P.J. Fleck, himself an accomplished coach.
Penn State hasn’t played consistently well in any of the three phases of the game: offense, defense, and special teams, but the Lions still stand at 10-1 today largely because of Franklin. Remember, it’s because of the confidence you showed your team when it was needed. That’s the best.
Leading 26-25 and trailing 4-1 with 3:38 left, Penn State lined up to punt.
Rather than give the game back to his leaky defense, Franklin called for a fake punt, which was executed perfectly and saw freshman protector Luke Reynolds rumble 32 yards.
Franklin said the play has already been developed. “Since the training camp” add “It was the cooking. With Thanksgiving coming up, it was the marinating.”
He praised Dominic Lurie, a 295-pound walk-on and punt team center whose job it is to recognize if an opponent is playing vulnerable defense.
Franklin said six times this year, a play was called, but Rulli checked out.
“We were waiting for good times.” Franklin said. “It was blocked very well.”
This flipped the field, the Lions moved to the Gophers’ 34, and Minnesota was forced to use all three timeouts.
With 2 minutes and 12 seconds remaining, Franklin hit a field goal on fourth-and-1 to make it 29-25, and the Lions got a first down on a sneak by Drew Aller to seal the game.
“We wanted to have the ball in our hands and finish the game our way.” he said. “We had to be aggressive.”
It wasn’t just calculated risk-taking that showed Penn State was a well-coached team at Huntington Bank Stadium.
Before the fake punt, there were two decisive touchdown drives that gave Penn State the lead when the Lions were trailing and their special teams were falling apart. Or semi-controlled.
The first attack followed a blocked punt, resulting in a one-play flea-flicker touchdown that gave Minnesota a 17-10 lead with 1:03 left in the first half.
Aller put the Lions in the lead right away with a 5-for-5 hit and a (generous) pass interference penalty, before finishing with a grueling 4-yard touchdown run to pull the Nitz within 17-16.
“We were really well coached in situational football.” Mr. Aller said. “It goes back to how you practice.”
Never mind that Penn State allowed a blocked extra point and Minnesota scored two points for a 19-16 lead.
The Gophers added a field goal early in the third quarter to take a 22-16 lead, but on the road in the second half, Penn State was forced to respond for the third time this year.
The Lions decisively prioritized Tyler Warren and Nick Singleton (two of Aller’s best offensive weapons), and five plays and 57 yards later, Penn State scored a touchdown and took the lead for good. Ta.
“Our team overcame adversity and found a way to win.” Franklin said.
Minnesota committed two turnovers and the Lions made two field goals, which made the difference in the game.
Penn State didn’t let itself get beat up either, as they only took two 10-yard penalties, and they made enough plays on both sides of the ball in the second half to offset their special teams blunders.
“This is the time of year when the chances of making a mistake on the road are small.” Franklin said. “I think you have to give a lot of credit to Minnesota and P.J. They were ready to play.”
Fleck accepted and returned the compliment.
He called Penn State. “One of the top five teams I’ve played against as a soccer coach.”
We’ll find out if that’s true in the coming weeks, but there’s no question the Nittany Lions were coached Saturday night.
Neil Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.
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