James Franklin addresses status of Amin Vanover, Daequan Hardy, Coziah Izzard

For the Penn State Nittany Lions to start the season, Amin Vanover, Daequan Hardy, and Coziah Izzard haven’t touched the field yet for the Nittany Lions. All three players have been sidelined to start the year dealing with injuries. But as Penn State prepares for their Week 3 showdown with Illinois Fighting Illini, all three individuals were sighted on the practice field with the team. When asked whether or not this was an indication that Vanover, Hardy, and Izzard would take the field for the Nittany Lions this week, coach James Franklin had this to say.

“Yeah, we’ll see how it all plays out. I’m not sure; I can’t really speak on it yet,” said Franklin.

It’s still too early in the week for Franklin to say whether or not they will participate in Week 3 action. But what the Penn State head man could speak to is how all three players have handled missing the first two games.

“Amin, (I was) very impressed with his maturity and growth over the last couple of years. He’s been really good. (And) Hardy, I would say the same thing.

“Coziah has had some bumps and bruises, as well, that have factored into that, too. But yeah, all three have handled it well so far.”

Franklin praises backup quarterback Beau Pribula too

Franklin wasn’t finished handing out praise. The Penn State head coach also had some high marks for backup quarterback Beau Pribula, explaining that he has the right mentality and approach despite not starting.

Franklin also acknowledged the challenge that goes along with not being the starter. That’s true of every position, but it’s often most noticeable at the quarterback position.

“I think it’s a really hard challenge,” James Franklin said. “Most of these guys, they’ve always been the best players, they’ve never not been the guy. So, it is a huge challenge just physically, the love of playing the game, the emotional impact on it, and to be honest with you, the parents — the parents struggle with it a lot of times. So, yeah, I think that is challenging, but I think it’s a good question.”

Pribula got into the game against Delaware in mop-up duty. The majority of his job was to hand the ball off but he still managed to throw for a touchdown. That’s because he was properly prepared for the game.

“I think, first of all, I think Beau is wired right,” Franklin said of Pribula. “His preparation is excellent. He’s a very thoughtful young man. I think he’s a very driven young man and extremely competitive. So, it’s funny because I think if you asked our players, they would say they’re sick of hearing that from me. I talked to the guys all the time, I met with the freshmen yesterday, that was one of the topics, are you preparing as if you were the starter right now because if you don’t then this time next year, you’re gonna be upset with your role because you’re not gonna be ready.”

On3’s Dan Morrison contributed to this article

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