Overall, nothing too controversial. Mostly it was vanilla coach speak. Franklin clearly values his relationships with the media, but his press conferences are unusual. He makes everyone tell him hello and if they don't he calls them out and makes them address him cordially.
*Franklin said he was surprised to learn that 68 of the 96 games in the series have been played in Pittsburgh. He wasn't snarky about it, just pointed it out as an interesting stat
*Pointed out the obvious that his players were either 2, 3 or 4 years old the last time Pitt and PSU played back in 2000. He stopped short of saying it's just another game, but said this is obviously a bigger deal to the fans and alumni of the 2 schools
*Made a nice statement about Conner. Said it's a great story for college football and the University of Pittsburgh. Very nice comments about all he has overcome and what an inspiration he is and a credit to his character and personality. He asked again later by a reporter about Conner, he said he's a special player and excited to see him prior to the game.
*First question from a reporter was asking how he would compare this game to an OSU or Michigan game and if he thinks it's a rivalry.. he said it's a historical rivalry, but a rivalry isn't something you should have to have a discussion about. He said his players are aware, but they are approaching the game like every other game on the schedule
*Asked if Pitt should be a permanent addition to the schedule... he pretty well skirted the question. Said it's a question that keeps coming up, but schedules are set until 2024 or 2025, they will re-evaluate it moving forward, blah, blah
*Asked about his personal relationship with the game having grown up in PA, he said he doesn't have any other than having a cousin who works at Pitt and having spent time in Pittsburgh as a kid with his father living in the Hill District. Said many Pitt fans have reached out to him on Twitter and it forced him to learn about the "Mute" and "Block" features
*Asked specifically about his reaction to Narduzzi closing off player access to media, he took the high road and said he coaches Penn State and isn't concerned with what other programs do leading up to the game. He said they aren't going to change anything in their approach this week.
*Asked about "Dominate the State" in back-to-back questions, he didn't really take the bait. Basically said that he said that in his opening press conference when he was hired as a philosophy in recruiting, but the media and others have taken that and made it into more
Again, nothing exciting.
*Franklin said he was surprised to learn that 68 of the 96 games in the series have been played in Pittsburgh. He wasn't snarky about it, just pointed it out as an interesting stat
*Pointed out the obvious that his players were either 2, 3 or 4 years old the last time Pitt and PSU played back in 2000. He stopped short of saying it's just another game, but said this is obviously a bigger deal to the fans and alumni of the 2 schools
*Made a nice statement about Conner. Said it's a great story for college football and the University of Pittsburgh. Very nice comments about all he has overcome and what an inspiration he is and a credit to his character and personality. He asked again later by a reporter about Conner, he said he's a special player and excited to see him prior to the game.
*First question from a reporter was asking how he would compare this game to an OSU or Michigan game and if he thinks it's a rivalry.. he said it's a historical rivalry, but a rivalry isn't something you should have to have a discussion about. He said his players are aware, but they are approaching the game like every other game on the schedule
*Asked if Pitt should be a permanent addition to the schedule... he pretty well skirted the question. Said it's a question that keeps coming up, but schedules are set until 2024 or 2025, they will re-evaluate it moving forward, blah, blah
*Asked about his personal relationship with the game having grown up in PA, he said he doesn't have any other than having a cousin who works at Pitt and having spent time in Pittsburgh as a kid with his father living in the Hill District. Said many Pitt fans have reached out to him on Twitter and it forced him to learn about the "Mute" and "Block" features
*Asked specifically about his reaction to Narduzzi closing off player access to media, he took the high road and said he coaches Penn State and isn't concerned with what other programs do leading up to the game. He said they aren't going to change anything in their approach this week.
*Asked about "Dominate the State" in back-to-back questions, he didn't really take the bait. Basically said that he said that in his opening press conference when he was hired as a philosophy in recruiting, but the media and others have taken that and made it into more
Again, nothing exciting.
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