As the sign-stealing scandal at Michigan continues to evolve every day, with an expected suspension for Jim Harbaugh looming, the No. 2 Wolverines are at the center of the college football world ahead of a matchup with No. 9 Penn State.
Former PSU linebacker and current Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule used the competitive advantage he believed the Wolverines had over him as a reason for their 45-7 loss. But those who have followed James Franklin in his decade in charge of the Nittany Lions knew he would carefully perform verbal gymnastics around that question.
“I know these questions are going to come this week. I’m going to focus on the things that we can control,” Franklin said. “We always have to have a plan in terms of what we do and how we communicate to our players and how we communicate to our team during games.
“But I’m going to leave it at that because less is more.”
Franklin was later asked about a potential suspension of Harbaugh, which could come down as early as this week and if he has followed that development at all, but his response remained the same.
“I’m focused on all the stuff I see on film,” Franklin said. “That’s what we’re focused on.”
As for the actual matchup between two of the three titans in the Big Ten, there is a sense of momentum for the first time in weeks, particularly with the offense, after a well-rounded beatdown of Maryland over the weekend.
“It’s definitely nice to get [the offense] rolling. We just want to keep building off that confidence, for sure. That’s going to be one of our main things in practice this week,” quarterback Drew Allar said. “It’s going to be a huge week for us in the quarterback, tight end and receiving room, just continuing to build off what we had going last week.”
Allar looked the sharpest he ever has in a Penn State uniform — with the potential exception of the season opener against West Virginia — in large part due to the breakout performance from Kent State transfer Dante Cephas.
Cephas, who entered the game with only 11 catches for 146 yards, acrobatically corralled his first two touchdowns of the season while posting season highs in receptions (six) and yards (53).
“Obviously, it was a huge game for [Cephas] this past Saturday. We’ve been working on that ever since he got on campus this past May,” Allar said. “We all knew he had the ability and the talent, it just came down to being comfortable with the system. I think these past two or three weeks, he’s really grown into his own and understands what we’re doing with this offense.”
Bigger and better up front
The biggest reason for Penn State’s 41-17 loss to Michigan last season was clearly the inability to stop the run, as Donovan Edwards and Blake Corum compiled 339 of Michigan’s 418 rushing yards on the afternoon.
In Saturday’s 51-15 win over Maryland, the Nittany Lions defense pushed the Terps in the opposite direction, allowing minus-49 yards on the ground behind six sacks.
If that isn’t enough reason to have confidence in this year’s rushing defense, the 55.9 rushing yards allowed per game is cut in half from 2022 and leads all of college football in 2023.
“I think we’ve been much more disciplined and consistent in gap responsibility. There’s been times where we’ve tried to make plays and get out of our gaps, and against good teams the ball will find the open gap,” Franklin said. “We’re a little bit bigger across the front, specifically the D-line. The size has helped us, as well.
“I think the combination of our front four and our experience and depth at linebacker gives us the best chance to continue to play great run defense, which is going to be very important in this game.”
Welcome back, Sean Lee
Two-time Pro Bowler and 2016 First-team All-Pro linebacker Sean Lee will return to Happy Valley on Saturday as the honorary captain against Michigan.
The beloved former team captain and Pittsburgh native spent 11 years in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys after becoming a staple of “Linebacker U” with the Nittany Lions.
“We’ll have Sean Lee, which is awesome having him back, we haven’t had him back in a while,” Franklin said.
Longtime equipment manager and current assistant director of club and suites Brad “Spider” Caldwell will join Lee as an honorary captain prior to Saturday’s game.
Health update
Standout defensive end Chop Robinson did not play in his return to Maryland, but he provided a boost from the sideline as he was able to make the trip with the team after an undisclosed injury against Ohio State.
Franklin was able to provide an update on both Robinson and Amin Vanover, who have each missed both contests since the loss to the Buckeyes.
“The opportunity to have both those guys back will be significant. We’re hopeful to have both those guys back,” Franklin said.
First Published: November 7, 2023, 6:52 p.m.
