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On Tuesday afternoon Penn State head coach James Franklin sat down to speak with reporters and it turned into one of the greatest soundbites of the James Franklin era.
A reporter asked the head coach if the team considered calling a few shot plays for quarterback Drew Allar. However, the reporter suggested Allar throw the ball even if the wide receiver is covered.
Franklin was beside himself with the question and didn’t even know how to respond.
“I don’t really understand what you’re saying, because we would never…like my skin is curling when you say just drop back and chuck it deep no matter what,” Franklin said. “I don’t even know what you’re saying. It’s like you’re speaking from Mars.”
Quite the scene from #PennState Football HC James Franklin’s press conference this week ☠️ pic.twitter.com/5NDvegIh4s
— Happy Valley Insider (@PennStateRivals) October 10, 2023
“We have never done that. Just throw the ball up and maybe he’ll be open and maybe he’ll catch it,” Franklin added. “You’re making me uncomfortable. I don’t know what you’re talking about. So yeah, we would not do that. We would never do that. We’ve never thought about doing that — as a head coach, as an offensive coordinator, as a receivers coach. When I coached the receivers I didn’t want them to do that. So no. No. Strong no.”
The Nittany Lions are last in college football in plays going for more than 40 yards this season so the reporter’s line of thinking may have been correct.
However, the execution of the question was not ideal.