Once again, James Franklin has a chance to help turn around the “big game James” narrative that surrounds him and his program, as the veteran head coach is 4-20 against top-10 opponents.

No. 6 Oregon will be his latest test against an elite opponent, and the whole nation is looking on at Franklin and the White Out as Penn State prepares for the 2024 Big Ten championship rematch.

Franklin met with the media Wednesday after practice in anticipation of Saturday’s contest, where he discussed the White Out environment, Drew Allar’s mentality in big games and more.

The White Out

Franklin always says how lucky he and his team are to play in Beaver Stadium seven games a year. The Happy Valley faithful are as passionate as they come each week — even against teams like Nevada — but their true legacy comes from the White Out.

What began as a tradition has turned into an event. Media personalities all over the country rate it as the best atmosphere, and nearly every Big Ten coach said it’s the toughest environment to play in. The Ducks will have to deal with that for the first time this weekend.

“When you’re able to get a night game against an opponent like we do with the sky, the black sky and the white crowd and the contrast of the dark uniforms and just the anticipation and the build up. The students sleeping outside the stadium all week,” Franklin said. “It’s just turned into a special event, and not just in football, really. In sports, if you’re a sports fan, this is like a bucket list thing that you need to attend.”

With the White Out comes other responsibilities for Franklin and his players. Ticket allocations are a big one, with Franklin joking Monday that he’s had people text him for tickets he hasn’t heard from in years.

It can be the same for the players, but Franklin said it’s a topic they discuss before the season even starts so they’re prepared when the time comes.

“That has to be part of their routine. I had a players meeting. I talked to them about it. We have a parents meeting,” Franklin said. “Everything we try to do is try to create a routine and also to try to find ways to eliminate distractions. That’s one of them. So by this week, I’m not saying people aren’t going to hit them up, but they should all have a routine about how their tickets are handled.”

Another big game for Drew Allar

Allar said on Zoom Wednesday he’s learned “what it feels like” to play in a big game with his three years of starting experience. Franklin touched on the same topic that night.

“I think you can prepare all you want to be the quarterback at Penn State, and I’m not undervaluing the preparation that they need to do to become the star quarterback at Penn State,” Franklin said. “But the reality is, there’s an aspect that until you’re actually back there and dealing with everything that comes with it, it’s hard to totally prepare for that kind of thing.”

Franklin added Allar shared stories with the team about his freshman year and how he has deleted social media as the attention given to players on it — both negative and positive — can consume the thoughts and hurt the mind.

“They understand the opportunity that we have this week. We’ve had three of these now, and this is the fourth, and it’s obviously a little bit different, based on how everybody talks about this game, and all the people that will be in town and all the attention that this game is getting nationally,” Franklin said. “But I think our guys, for the most part, they recognize what this is, but it’s been business as usual.”

Starting fast, finishing strong

A big emphasis for Penn State against Oregon is starting fast. Franklin talked about it Monday, Allar discussed it Wednesday and Franklin spoke on it again after practice.

“We’ve talked about it and made sure everybody understands that’s a big part of this game,” Franklin said. “We’ll always start practice with some type of individual competition, whether it’s one-on-one routes, whether it’s one-on-one pass rush, whether it’s angle-tackle drill and then we do some type of good on good period, whether it’s two minute, third down, red zone, whatever it may be. Good-on-good, so we’re getting that speed work and that competition right from the beginning of practice.”

After losing to the Ducks last season, the players felt the loss came down to just a few plays. Franklin said the game against Oregon this year is once again likely finishing at the wire.

“I think it’s going to be similar when you have two programs that have had the type of success that we’ve both had over the last couple of years, the way the programs are built, the way the programs are supported, you know, the level of support that we get from the community and the stadiums, all that kind of stuff,” Franklin said. “I expect this to be a four quarter battle.”

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