Penn State Will Be Ready in Four Weeks, James Franklin Says
James Franklin believes Penn State could be ready to play football in four weeks, but they will be a very different kind of four weeks.
After the Big Ten approved football's restart for October, Penn State quickly began implementing the plan it had ready for a new kind of training camp. Penn State has to navigate not only the complicated reality of COVID-19 restrictions but also players' class schedules, something a traditional camp avoids.
With the first game scheduled for the weekend of Oct. 23-24, Penn State would have five weeks to prepare. It's unclear when the Lions might transition from their current 12-hour weekly practice model to training camp. The Big Ten said Wednesday that its planned daily rapid testing program will begin by Sept. 30.
"The thing we know is, we need four weeks," Franklin said on the recent edition of Penn State football's official podcast 'Unrivaled.' "Most of the coaches have agreed, we think we can pull off a season with four weeks' preparation. It wouldn't be a normal camp, because obviously we're in school full-time. ... But in four weeks, we could be playing, and then we're right back in the hunt of it."
During the Big Ten's football pause, Franklin's staff built several training-camp models that were flexible depending on the return dates. Franklin's staff is adroit at such model construction, having been with him for several years. In fact, Kevin Threlkel, Penn State's director of football administration, has worked with Franklin since their time together at Kansas State in the mid-2000s.
Because players are in their full-time class schedules, Franklin hopes that the program could hold more traditional training-camp practices on weekends over the next month. Another step is holding full-roster practices, with contact, which Penn State was unable to do before the shutdown.
"It's having the urgency, the understanding, that we don't know when we'll have the opportunity to play, but when we do, we have to be ready," assistant coach Tim Banks said this summer. "We have no idea, but the goal is, every day we wake up, we're trying to win the day. If you can understand that mantra and truly digest it, I think you have a chance to be successful."
Defensive coordinator Brent Pry said last week that Penn State certainly has missed not having any truly live periods since the Cotton Bowl. Without spring practice or a complete training camp, the Lions haven't scrimmaged and or held any contact drills.
But Pry said he expected the players to recalibrate quickly.
"At some point you know they’re a physical player, Pry said on the Penn State Coaches Show. "You've seen it, you've witnessed it, it's one of the reasons you wanted to recruit him and sign him. Hopefully, we have an opportunity to do that. Everybody needs to crack the pads a little bit and get back to the physical piece of the game."
On Sept. 4, the day before its originally scheduled home-opener, Penn State conducted a night practice at Beaver Stadium. Some players were there for the first time, as were a few coaches.
Franklin called the session cathartic not only for the players but also for themselves. Two weeks later, they're ready to go back for real.
"We're standing in the stadium, and we went in there for a reason," Franklin said on the 'Unrivaled' podcast. "To remind everybody to look around. This is an unusual year, we're facing adversity, I get all that. But everybody, take a deep breath and look around and focus on our blessings."
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