Tuesday afternoon in his weekly press conference, Penn State Football head coach James Franklin spoke on opening Big Ten play on the road for the 13th time out of the last 14 seasons, including every season since 2016.
According to Franklin, Penn State has a “tradition” of opening on the road for which he joked “We love it”.
Franklin mentioned that during a recent phone call with Athletic Director Pat Kraft, that Penn State may try a new technique to buck the trend of opening on the road: Reverse Psychology.
Franklin on Illinois: Opening on the road again. Talked to Pat Kraft about asking to be on the road to start 2024 to try “reverse psychology”
— Penn State FB Thoughts (@PSU_FB_Thoughts) September 12, 2023
<< BUY PENN STATE TICKETS >>
With the Big Ten in the process of making a new schedule for 2024 after the addition of Oregon and Washington to the Big Ten, Franklin joked that Penn State Football may “ask to be on the road this year” to see what happens.
In July 2022 after his hiring at Penn State, Pat Kraft called Penn State’s trend of opening on the road “unacceptable”.
Kraft has previously mentioned that he called the Big Ten office to discuss the trend of Penn State opening on the road. Once the schedule is released later this year, Penn State will find out whether it opens on the road for the ninth year in a row.
July 27: Penn State AD Pat Kraft about Nittany Lions opening league play on road every year since 2016: “It stinks. I called conference office & said this is unacceptable. This shouldn’t happen at Penn State”
Today: Big Ten 2023
schedule is out & Penn State opens at Illinois— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) October 26, 2022
A note to our readers; If you make a purchase through one of our affiliate links, we may receive a commission
Education: Saint Vincent College, Penn State Law School
Location: Washington, DC
Experience:Robert Casturo has covered Penn State football for NittanyCentral since 2022. Casturo previously covered Penn State football through a social media presence (@PSU_FB_Thoughts on X) since 2019. Casturo earned his bachelor's degree from Saint Vincent College in 2015, where he was a punter for 1 season on the Saint Vincent College football team and worked in the athletic department for 2 years as a student manager. Casturo earned his JD from Penn State Law in 2018 where he was a senior editor of the Penn State Law Review.
- Drew Allar Named Top-10 Returning QB By Pro Football Focus - February 14, 2024
- Penn State Football: Breaking Down James Franklin’s Bowl Game Record - December 13, 2023
- Penn State Football Picks Up Intriguing Transfer Portal Commitment - December 11, 2023