Quicker, Stiff-Arming Penn State QB Drew Allar Deserves His Swagger, James Franklin Says

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar had himself some moments on Saturday, when he completed 11 of his 17 pass attempts for 216 yards and three touchdowns. He threw dimes to Trey Wallace for touchdowns and had about 65 air yards on a 55-yard deep ball to Omari Evans in an explosive second quarter for the Nittany Lions.

Those were moments that showed Allar’s mix of arm talent, accuracy, and touch that got NFL people excited in his first game as a draft-eligible junior.

But, perhaps the real moment that gave off “Allar has arrived” vibes was the most notable of his six rush attempts for 44 yards.

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Drew Allar Earns High Praise from Penn State Head Coach James Franklin

Allar ran right, fought off a quick arm tackle, and managed to stiff-arm linebacker Josiah Trotter to the turf to pick up an extra yard or two. He did that right in front of Penn State’s bench and got a big reaction, James Franklin noted on Monday, which has a chance to be THE moment behind an Allar rise if that version shows up week in and week out for PSU.

Here’s Franklin’s full quote when asked about Allar’s attitude against WVU. The coach lit up with Lions247 reporter Daniel Gallen asked about Allar being more “demonstrative.”

“I think part of it, too, right, it’s year two for him as the starting quarterback, year three in the program,” Franklin said. “He shouldn’t look the same, shouldn’t behave the same. There should be growth. There should be more confidence, more swagger, because he’s earned that, right?

“Confidence is something you earn, it’s not something that you give, it’s something you’ve earned. He’s worked really hard. You see it in his play. That stiff arm was a credit to our strength and conditioning program and also a credit to Drew and the work he’s put in.

And I also think for that to happen on our sideline and for our sideline to see that and see him make a play like that that he has not made in the past, and to react the way he reacted, was really pretty cool.

“I think all the points you make are fair, but, again, I think some of that is Danny O’Brien, Andy Kotelnicki, are coaching about things that he did well last year and things he needs to do better this year.

“I think it’s also just part of his maturation process and his being comfortable with being the starting quarterback at Penn State and everything that comes with it.

“But I think the word you used (“demonstrative”) was a really good word to describe it. I don’t know if I necessarily would’ve said that I knew that was coming, but I sure was glad it happened.”

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All good things from West Virginia for Allar, whose arm and streamlined mechanics have long been noteworthy strengths. The reshaping of his body losing 10 pounds also figures to show up on the field with better speed and quicker cuts as a runner.

If he keeps being driven to provide a spark with his attitude, too, that would be icing on a Heisman-worthy cake.

MORE: Drew Allar Report Card From West Virginia Rout

 

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