The head coaches of Notre Dame and Penn State are starting a press conference shortly. I'll share updates in this thread.
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Football VIDEO: Penn State / Notre Dame Joint Orange Bowl Press Conference
- Thread starter Richie O
- Start date
In a conversation about two black coaches meeting in the Orange Bowl, Marcus Freeman makes sure to give credit to Jack Swarbrick and Father Jenkins for having the courage to hire a first-time head coach and giving him the opportunity to get here.
James Franklin jokes about Freeman: "Look at the hairline on this guy. I'm envious of his hairline in a lot of ways."
James Franklin jokes about Freeman: "Look at the hairline on this guy. I'm envious of his hairline in a lot of ways."
Freeman on Jadarian Price: He is a young man that has put a lot of work into the point that he's got to now ... He takes advantage of his opportunities.
On Jeremiyah Love: He had a good week of practice. We have to be smart in terms of how much we've had him do in practice to get him ready. ... Nobody feels 100%. J-Love will be ready to go.
On Jeremiyah Love: He had a good week of practice. We have to be smart in terms of how much we've had him do in practice to get him ready. ... Nobody feels 100%. J-Love will be ready to go.
Freeman on having a former head coach at defensive coordinator: When I hired Al Golden, I had two things in mind. One, I thought he a great defensive mind. And two, at that point we did not have a former head coach on our staff. I thought it was important to get someone who had experience that I did not have.
On the challenge of playing the longest season either team has been part of ...
Franklin: You're gonna have to be open-minded, creative and flexible. We've tried to do that. ... How important depth and development in your program is. You've gotta be willing to play guys ... I don't know if this is really what it's designed to be. ... When every decision we make is based on finances, we're not making decision that are in the best interests of student-athletes and the game of football. ... I think everybody should be in a conference. Everyone should play a conference championship game or no one should play a conference championship game. Every conference should play the same number of conference games ... Things need to be consistent across the calendar. Should we open the season a week early to take some of the pressure off the end of the season?
Franklin named Nick Saban, Chris Petersen and Dave Clawson as guys who should be considered as commissioner of college football.
Franklin: You're gonna have to be open-minded, creative and flexible. We've tried to do that. ... How important depth and development in your program is. You've gotta be willing to play guys ... I don't know if this is really what it's designed to be. ... When every decision we make is based on finances, we're not making decision that are in the best interests of student-athletes and the game of football. ... I think everybody should be in a conference. Everyone should play a conference championship game or no one should play a conference championship game. Every conference should play the same number of conference games ... Things need to be consistent across the calendar. Should we open the season a week early to take some of the pressure off the end of the season?
Franklin named Nick Saban, Chris Petersen and Dave Clawson as guys who should be considered as commissioner of college football.
Franklin on Abdul Carter: We anticipate Abdul playing. He's doing everything he possibly can to play ... It will be a game-time decision.
Why is running the football and stopping the run a big part of your team's identity?
Freeman: For us, it's what we do well and what we have to do to have success with this current team. ... Just from a defensive coaching background, when you can't stop an offense from running the ball, it can be demoralizing.
Freeman: For us, it's what we do well and what we have to do to have success with this current team. ... Just from a defensive coaching background, when you can't stop an offense from running the ball, it can be demoralizing.
James Franklin: "I love the Kings of the North."
He was asked if there's something that's allowing northern teams to emerge.
Franklin: You described as a cold-weather team. I don't know if I would necessarily describe us that way in recruiting. We don't really sell it that way.
More Franklin: There are some changes going on right now. What that is specific to, I'm not really sure. I don't know if there's enough data points to have a strong statement on it. ... The programs that are being creative, aggressive and bold, which is what we're trying to do, it's helping ... It's good for college football that there's more teams represented and more parts of the country represented.
He was asked if there's something that's allowing northern teams to emerge.
Franklin: You described as a cold-weather team. I don't know if I would necessarily describe us that way in recruiting. We don't really sell it that way.
More Franklin: There are some changes going on right now. What that is specific to, I'm not really sure. I don't know if there's enough data points to have a strong statement on it. ... The programs that are being creative, aggressive and bold, which is what we're trying to do, it's helping ... It's good for college football that there's more teams represented and more parts of the country represented.
Freeman: Coach Franklin has a lot more experience in college athletics where you can formulate a strong opinion. For us, whatever you tell us, we're gonna make the most of. ... I don't have a whole bunch of opinions on it. ... I love where we're at right now.
Franklin: I think in a much more elegant way, Marcus just called me old.
Franklin says he tries to look at it from the perspective of the CFP committee ... How do you put those people in the room to make those decisions and they can't compare apples to apples or oranges to oranges?
Franklin: I think in a much more elegant way, Marcus just called me old.
Franklin says he tries to look at it from the perspective of the CFP committee ... How do you put those people in the room to make those decisions and they can't compare apples to apples or oranges to oranges?
Freeman on the turnaround between the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl: For both programs, we figured out who we were playing at the same time ... so the mental preparation was the same for both of us ... The coaches were probably a little bit behind to start because of the travel ... Physically our guys are good. ... We have to utilize every minute from now until tomorrow night at 7:30.
Abdul being a game time decision...uggh. Hopefully it's JF playing mind games. Freeman says Love will be ready to go. Really hope Abdul toughs it out and plays...especially since Love has a knee and apparently will give it a go.
Thanks, great updates.
Freeman is a class act and has really grown into a very high-profile job after taking it with no head-coaching experience.
Franklin is a class act too. Great to see these two guys getting this final-four platform together. These are two programs that have historically tried to do things the right way.
I'm encouraged by what he had to say about Abdul. To me it sounds like he's going to play. I mean, I don't know how else to understand Franklin's statement that he "anticipates" Abdul will play. Anticipate means expect. So the coach expects him to play.
I've learned not to read anything into injury verbiage...I expect Abdul to sit until we see him out there. Just seems like our guys don't play thru these kind of things.
Depends on what the injury actually is. A separated shoulder, if that’s the case, is a difficult injury to play thru.
Me too. Oh well, this is the tradeoff in this system, more opportunities to get into the playoffs and more opportunities for injury.
He'll play. Franklin saying he anticipates he will play. Carter is not missing this game.
I like Franklin cracking jokes. Stay loose and keep the team loose.
HV TV: Penn State / Notre Dame Joint Orange Bowl Press Conference
Penn State Football HC James Franklin and Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman talk with the media ahead of the Orange Bowl.
Did any of you ever get injured while playing organized sports, perhaps in high school?
When you are receiving treatment for an injury it is absolutely necessary that you wait as long as possible to do your final 'can I play' evaluation. You want to give your body the maximum amount of time to heal before you do your 'stress test' to determine your capabilities and availability.
If you attempt to do your evaluation too soon in order to satisfy the fans appetite for their right to know now, you risk for reinjury is higher because you did your eval prematurely.
I hope that this makes sense.
When you are receiving treatment for an injury it is absolutely necessary that you wait as long as possible to do your final 'can I play' evaluation. You want to give your body the maximum amount of time to heal before you do your 'stress test' to determine your capabilities and availability.
If you attempt to do your evaluation too soon in order to satisfy the fans appetite for their right to know now, you risk for reinjury is higher because you did your eval prematurely.
I hope that this makes sense.
Love might be ready, but impactful in the orange bowl? I highly doubt it. What’s he going to get 5-6 touches at best? I’m going with the opposite of how both coaches are playing the game. Abdul is healthier than Love.
Same here. Franklin could be saying he expects Carter to play just to make ND prepare for him. We know that Carter didn't practice when the media was present and I think they only have 1 day of practice in Miami.
How easy is it for a player to go 9 days without practicing and still be ready to play?
I don't think it's just about health. A player might sit out to avoid injury as they prepare for the NFL.
Yes very true. I will keep the faith of a tough kid from Philly going for that championship!!
He had 6 carries by the 3rd quarter when he hurt his knee. Thats the same knee he hurt in the last game of the season, but he’s almost 100%. I’m calling BS on Notre Dame.
If Carter had his left arm amputated, Franklin would say it is a game time decision. If Carter just won the Olympic gold medal in weight lifting, Franklin would say it is a game time decision.
Any judgment of a player for not playing or playing when no one on this board knows squat about anyone’s injury is beyond absurd.
I really hope Abdul can play and if he plays, I hope his effectiveness is not severely limited. I’ll leave it at that. Fingers crossed!🤞🏼
I really hope Abdul can play and if he plays, I hope his effectiveness is not severely limited. I’ll leave it at that. Fingers crossed!🤞🏼
There's zero chance of that
This isn't a bowl game--they're contending for a title. No one is sitting out to train unless they're injured
It would seem that playing in this game would improve Carter's draft standing. The NFL wants players with the resolve and will to help their team that make playing in playoff games a big priority. JMO
More likely a PSU LB would shadow their QB. If Carter plays it would seem the majority of his snaps would be at DE, not LB. But who knows....
If he can't play I forr one will not question the decision. Not good to play with very limited effectiveness or risk further injury.
This is why I think Tony Rojas is the most important player for the defense tomorrow. He has great speed, but he is a poor tackler in my opinion. He definitely could be the guy to contain quarterback runs, but he’s gotta wrap up and not allow extra yardage.
I would use the word inconsistent vs poor. And he doesn't always seem to take the best angles.
He definitely has room for growth but flashes the potential of being a really special player.
And as you indicated, this game is an opportunity for him (and our whole team) to shine in the national spotlight.
