Penn State is officially set to face Pac-12 champion Utah in this year’s Rose Bowl Game on January 2, and Nittany Lions head coach [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] knows his team will be in for a physical battle with the Utes.
“They’re a tough, hard-nosed football team that is resilient and can overcome adversity,” Franklin said of Penn State’s Rose Bowl opponent on a conference call with the media on Sunday.
Franklin watched the Pac-12 championship game, perhaps knowing his team was expected to head to the Rose Bowl in any number of scenarios and would face Utah if the Utes knocked USC out of the College Football Playoff, which they did (Utah may have gone to the Rose Bowl as the Pac-12 representative even with a loss, although a loss by Utah would have sent USC to the playoff and could have sent Washington to the Rose Bowl instead). Franklin saw what many of us did watching the Pac-12 championship game, which was Utah having the ability to make big plays at the most opportune times.
And like most watching Utah for the first time, an instant respect for the Utes was gained watching the toughness they exhibited against the Trojans.
“You know, one of my favorite plays in that game is when the quarterback kind of hurdled over a leg or body and then got hit and his helmet flew off. To me, it’s very telling when you watch a guy that gets hit like that and how they respond,” Franklin said, referring to Utah quarterback Cam Rising taking a big hit while running the football.
“He bounced right up and put his helmet right back on. You know, that has such and impact on your team and on your program when your quarterback can take a shot like that and bounce right back,” Franklin said of Rising. “I think that’s very telling of who they are as a program.”
Having a steady head coach like Kyle Whittingham is a big reason why Utah is where it is today. FOX analyst Joel Klatt ranks Whittingham in his top five coaches in the game today, and Franklin shared his respect for what Whittingham has accomplished with the Utah program.
“They’ve got a veteran coach [Kyle Whittingham], who’s been there and one that,” Franklin said. “He’s had a ton of success building that program.”
“It’s gonna be a heck of a game and it’s going to be a heck of a challenge in a tremendous venue,” Franklin added. “I know our guys will be looking forward to it.”
Penn State will face Utah in the Rose Bowl Game on January 2, 2023.
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