Franklin pushing consistency, not panic, over drops

Penn State head coach James Franklin is not panicking over the drops.

His Nittany Lions, 4-1 coming off an idle weekend, continue to have one of the nation’s most prolific offenses even without the services of Joe Moorhead, Saquon Barkley, Mike Gesicki, and DaeSean Hamilton. And, given the performance in a losing 27-26 effort against Ohio State, the Nittany Lions also have a defense looking as though it is rounding into form.

But, even a cursory glance at one area of Penn State’s offensive proficiency demonstrates a striking departure from the 2016 or 2017 seasons. Down from the nation’s No. 36-ranked passing offense in 2016 (260.7 yards per game), and No. 23 last year (290.2 ypg), the Nittany Lions currently check in at No. 54 nationally.

“I think obviously we can be more consistent. I don't think there’s any doubt about it. I think the receivers individually would say that. I think David Corley would say that as well,” Franklin told reporters following the team’s Wednesday evening practice last week. “That’s what we're working for. Everybody owns it. It’s not any one person. Everybody owns it, including myself. That’s why you see guys out here right now getting extra reps.

“I know it’s not for a lack of effort. We need to be more consistent and focused. We need to make sure that our techniques and fundamentals are so second nature that we don't even think about it. It just happens. I do think we’ve improved dramatically in the run game with our perimeter blocking. But we need to be more consistent, no doubt.”

It’s also not for a lack of attempts.

Through five games, quarterback Trace McSorley has thrown for 1,049 yards in completing 73-of-138 attempts (52.9 percent) with 10 touchdowns and just two interceptions. In the same span last year, McSorley had completed 105-of-160 passes for 1,352 yards and 12 touchdowns, good for a 65.6 completion percentage.

Though his attempts are down about four throws per game, McSorley’s decreased completion percentage can be tied closely to the struggles of Penn State’s receivers in hauling in the football this season.

According to Pro Football Focus’ advanced statistics, among Penn State’s 12 players to have pulled in a pass this season, eight have been charged with at least one drop. Together, they’ve let 17 passes drop as opposed to 26 all of the 2017 season and just 24 the year before. Consequently, McSorley also has both of his interceptions thrown this season attributable to dropped passes.

Confident in the group’s ability, Franklin again stressed last week that consistency, more than talent, is the primary concern when it comes to rectifying the issue.

“We just gotta work through it and continue to build confidence and continue to build fundamentals and techniques,” said Franklin. “Obviously you look at Juwan's catch on the sideline, was as good as you'll see. So we have the ability, we just have to be more consistent in all the things that we do. We can throw the ball a little bit more accurately. We can consistently catch the ball at a higher rate, looking the ball all the way into the tuck. Those types of things. But again, we've got tremendous faith and belief in those guys.”

That faith, particularly among Penn State’s most veteran receivers Juwan Johnson, Brandon Polk, and DeAndre Thompkins, combining for nearly 40 percent of Penn State’s targets this season, remains strong.

So strong that Penn State’s true freshman reserves don’t appear to be in line to ascend up the depth chart in the immediate future.

Calling it a “week-to-week deal,” Franklin explained that certain circumstances might eventually require the services of five-star Justin Shorter, preseason camp standout Jahan Dotson or Daniel George, but that has not been the case yet.

“If they keep improving or we have some deficiencies or injuries or things like that where those guys can jump in and help us, we still have the ability at this point in the season to green light them and play them the rest of the season,” said Franklin. “Or we still have the ability to use their four games and each week, we'll take it week-by-week and see what we think is the best scenario to give our team the best chance to be successful.”

Set to embark on the meat of the Big Ten schedule with plenty left to play for, it's a scenario Franklin and the Nittany Lions are hoping sees dramatic improvement soon.