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Penn State Football: James Franklin discusses the state of the quarterback position

By Justin Grasso

STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 15: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks on before the game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Kent State Golden Flashes at Beaver Stadium on September 15, 2018 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 15: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks on before the game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Kent State Golden Flashes at Beaver Stadium on September 15, 2018 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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Penn State football’s head coach James Franklin met with the media for the first time since April on Wednesday to discuss the state of the QB position.

The Penn State football program is currently transitioning into a new chapter for the 2019 season as they look to replace one of their most productive players from over the years. Trace McSorley; former Penn State quarterback has been on board for the last four seasons. Though he only played in six games as a Freshman, McSorley served the program well for the previous three seasons as he became one of the best quarterbacks in Penn State history.

Now, he’s moved on to the big leagues, which left the Nittany Lions with an obvious choice — start Tommy Stevens, who happened to be McSorley’s backup during his three-year tenure. However, Stevens wasn’t thrilled about the way Nittany Lions’ head coach James Franklin was handling the situation. Ever since his arrival to Happy Valley to become the head coach, Franklin made it clear that nobodies spot on the depth chart is safe. He wants to keep the competitive spirit alive.

Unfortunately, that didn’t sit well with Stevens, who apparently wanted a verbal guarantee from Franklin, letting him know that his spot as QB1 was secure. Coach Franklin wouldn’t budge, though, which meant that Stevens wouldn’t stay.

Off to Mississippi State, he went, and just like that, Penn State is down a passer. “I want what’s best for Tommy, what’s best for Penn State football, and at the end of the day, I care about Tommy. He did wonderful things for us and our program, and I wish him nothing but success, and obviously, I want to make sure Penn State is successful,” Franklin said on Wednesday as he spoke to the media for the first time since April.

Who will start in 2019?

Knowing that he’s down a passer though, who does Franklin intend on being the starting quarterback for when the regular season rolls around? So far, he’s unsure. The public consensus believes that Sean Clifford has the position locked up, but Will Levis is going to get his equal opportunity. As Franklin made it clear to Stevens, nobodies spot on the depth chart is guaranteed. And that not only goes for the quarterback position — it goes for everywhere else as well.

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“Guys who are returning starters have an advantage, but we’re going to have open competition every single year, you have to go out and earn it,” Franklin told PennLive’s Greg Pickel. So far, the competition has already kicked off, and it’s expected to go deep into the summertime. As Franklin mentioned earlier on Wednesday afternoon, he won’t have his answer for the quarterback position until at least August. They will have quite a lot of time to figure all of that out.

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