Getty Image / Scott Taetsch
Many times, college football teams will have loud music or artificial crowd noise pumped in at practice to simulate a tough road environment at road games during the week. But, Penn State coach James Franklin doesn’t feel the need to do that with his team going to play at sleepy Ryan Field this weekend, home of the Northwestern Wildcats.
And, let’s face it, he’s got a point. It’s not exactly the atmosphere the Iowa Hawkeyes faced at Penn State’s White Out on Saturday, to say the least.
The comments came at the end of practice on Wednesday, when James Franklin typically has media availability.
Penn State practiced without music at the end of practice today to get ready for the Northwestern trip.
Franklin said they have to be honest about the atmosphere. He asked if they’re an internally or externally motivated team.
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) September 27, 2023
Ouch. Granted, he’s not wrong. Last year, Northwestern averaged less than 30,000 people per game in a capacity of 47,000. Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions shutout Iowa, 31-0, in front of over 110,000 people on Saturday.
James Franklin has to be feeling great about his team coming off of that win. Yes, Iowa’s offense is an abomination. But, a loaded Nittany Lion defense made it look worse than it is with a dominant performance.
The Hawkeyes had just 76 total yards of offense against Penn State. 54 of those yards came on the first two drives of the game. From 11:05 remaining in the first quarter until late in the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes did not have a single first down. Total plays on offense were 97-33 in favor of Penn State. That’s a ridiculous margin, and the biggest such margin in recent memory.
And, with true sophomore quarterback and former five-star Drew Allar playing turnover-free football so far to go along with eight touchdown passes, the sixth-ranked Nittany Lions could be poised for a big year. Yes, Ohio State and Michigan await, and those games will ultimately decide whether it’s a successful season or not. But, they have the best chance they’ve had in a long time at beating both, something they haven’t done in a season since 2008.
For what it’s worth, Northwestern is coming off a huge overtime win against Minnesota, despite trailing in the fourth quarter, 31-10. After a tumultuous offseason that saw Pat Fitzgereald
Penn State-Northwestern will kick off at Noon on the Big Ten Network.