You may have missed it, but James Franklin offered up one of the most self-aware statements of his tenure Saturday afternoon during his post Blue-White press conference.
“Can we take a step where you guys [the media] ask about the offensive line?” Franklin said. “I say something, and then we back it up?”
For anyone who spends time unpacking Franklin’s weekly press conferences and media sessions it was a hilarious moment to hear spoken into existence. That yes, Franklin is also exhausted by the program’s achilles heel perpetually being exactly that, and yes he knows you are too.
In many ways it’s remarkable that Penn State has struggled so mightily on the offensive front considering that the defensive trenches never really lost a step following the departure of Larry Johnson and eventually Sean Spencer. The roles for those types of players might be different but the juxtaposition is certainly present on each side of the ball.
The “saying something” part is also particularly enjoyable to unpack. Penn State’s offensive line has perpetually been on the brink of what it needs to be, each spring and summer, coaches and players alike touting that this year will be the one it all comes together.
And yet…
In fairness to all those involved, Penn State’s offensive line has probably been equal parts as bad as you think it is and also better than it gets credit for. Elite offensive line play is hard to come by, and Penn State hasn’t boasted explosive offenses and won a Big Ten Title behind totally awful lines. And yes, Saquon Barkley was tackled in the backfield about a million times per game, but he also commanded that kind of outnumbering in order to contain.
All the same, Franklin basically saying “it would be nice if the line was finally what we want it to be” and saying it in public, was noteworthy if not a somewhat humorous admission.
Not to mention a somewhat pointed challenge to offensive line coach Phil Trautwein.
“We tape everything,” Franklin said. “We chart everything, we’ve got data on everything and then to be able to go back […] and rank our 22 best players and then based on that ranking, that should dictate how we play on offense and defense. Let’s rank our units. Offensive line through quarterback and everywhere in between and what’s our strongest units, what’s our weakest units and then as coaches at the end of the year, let’s rewrite it and see if it plays out the same way. You got a chance as as a position coach to fix it. Your position was the last group on offense or defense. Let’s fix it.”
Is this the year that it all comes together? Injuries and depth says maybe not, but time will tell.
