UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- If there was a magic wand to wave in front of Penn State's offensive line that would make the players more physical and mature overnight, James Franklin surely would've tried it by now.
"Seems like this entire press conference is (about) the offensive line," Franklin said Tuesday afternoon, about 35 minutes into his weekly news conference.
Well, there's no quick fix for a position group that's been scrutinized much of this season, but especially in the past month as one-time Hesiman front runner Saquon Barkley has lost his once firm grip on college football's most prestigious individual accolade while failing to rush for more than 65 yards in the past three games. Franklin pulled some of the team's younger linemen into his office last week to talk about how they can develop more of a mean streak and a finisher's mentality.
But he was quick to add that these challenges up front extend beyond the offensive line.
Penn State hasn't changed their front five since left tackle Ryan Bates was hurt against Ohio State and Franklin said there won't be any changes coming to the unit, either. Now, Bates getting healthy would solve one problem in allowing redshirt freshman Will Fries to move back to right tackle.
"What I said was, I said the O-line and the tight ends. There are a lot of things that factor into it. It's not just those guys," Franklin said. "We're playing the guy that we feel like gives us the best chance to win on Saturdays. We've obviously had some injuries which have factored into it. We don't spend a whole lot of time talking about injuries, because it's the next-man-up mentality on offense, defense and special teams. But we've got to be more physical up front with the O-line and the tight end. There is no doubt about it."
Tight end Mike Gesicki, whose struggles in the run game have been the biggest knock on the athletic tight end since he came out of high school as an oversized wide receiver, was criticized by Penn State alum and broadcaster Matt Millen during Saturday's win against Rutgers.
"It's embarrassing. I don't want to dog the guy. At the next level, it's got to get better than that. It's got to get better at this level," Millen said during the broadcast.
Franklin and Gesicki both said they were unaware of the comments, with the senior adding that it's going to take more than one commentator ripping him to get him down. While the head coach said the bulk of tight end coach Ricky Rahne's work with his position group has been on blocking, struggling to find athletic tight ends who can also block well in the run game is a challenge at all levels.
Jesse James struggled with it during his Penn State career and still does with the Steelers. The buy-in factor is huge in blocking and while Gesicki and his position coach said he has that down, Franklin said he plans to speak with senior offensive lineman Brendan Mahon again this week about needing him to be more physical, too.
The Lions need someone to set the tone for the line. Mahon could be that person, Franklin said.
"Mahon has got the ability to be one of the most physical offensive linemen in the country. He's an older guy. He's a senior. I think when he does it, the rest will follow," Franklin said. "So I'm probably going to have another conversation with him this week about the impact that he can have and the legacy that he can leave here."
The fact that Franklin is having a conversation with a senior who has played all across this line during his career about needing to play with more of a mean streak speaks volumes. Franklin said all of these linemen are more than capable of being more aggressive and physical, and that he's seen it at points. But putting it all together hasn't happened.
Part of the line's struggles this season also include who they haven't had. Senior tackle Andrew Nelson was expected to be a large part of the offense this season. If not right away, certainly by the mid-point of the season. Instead, back-to-back season-ending knee injuries have made Nelson a non-factor this season as his physical limitations have kept him off the field for much of the year. Nelson traveled to East Lansing two weekends ago where he was able to go through warmups, but beyond that he hasn't played since starting at Iowa in September.
Franklin said Nelson is now back in a position where he's "available if we need him."
"I think not having a guy like that, a fifth-year senior, you'd love to have two fifth-year seniors on your offensive line at the very least, and a really talented guy," Franklin said. "He's got the size, he's got the strength, he's got the intelligence, he's got the experience. It's really important to him. He's kind of been on a roller coaster since he's been here. He's a guy that's handled a lot of difficult situations really well."
QUICK HITS
• Senior day always brings with it a wave of emotions. Penn State's seniors figuring out how to handle the moment before flipping the switch and running out of the tunnel with their teammates is a challenge. This group includes the first players Franklin recruited when he was hired, giving this group a naturally closer relationship with the head coach than those in previous years.
• ESPN analyst Jonathan Vilma said last week that one of Penn State's tackles is tipping his hand as to whether or not the Lions are going to run the ball or pass. Franklin said the Lions did additional self scouting during the bye week to look at tendencies. It sounds as if this is something the offense continues working to adjust, and by moving around Barkley and disguising certain looks they're able to keep opposing defenses more honest.
Are they tipping plays though?
"That's what defenses do," Franklin said of teams looking for tendencies even with all the checks the Lions do at the line of scrimmage. "I can say that about every offense in the country. There's tells. That's what our defense does. That's what our offense does. Are there some things that we can do better? Yes. No doubt about it. ... I'd also say, if the tells were so obvious, I still think we're averaging, I think, 31 points a game. And if everybody knew what they were doing on most of our plays, I would think we'd be scoring a lot less than that."
• Linebacker Manny Bowen will not play this week due to a violation of team rules. Bowen didn't play against Rutgers, either. The Lions will rely on Brandon Smith. Bowen is missing his third start since the Rose Bowl where he also was suspended for a violation of team rules.
• One name to know for 2018 is that of safety Ayron Monroe. All indications were that Monroe would be poised for a bigger role with the defense this season, but instead Troy Apke beat him out for the starting job. Monroe continued being a key special teams player and getting reps at safety as needed.
"Ayron Monroe we're really excited about. He's very athletic. He's got really good range and ball skills. He can run. He's growing," Franklin said. "I know Coach [Tim] Banks is really excited about his development for our future."
I asked Banks about Monroe last week during the safety coach's teleconference and he said it's not that Monroe is doing anything wrong, rather with two safeties ahead of him his opportunities have just been limited. Still, he's all over the place on special teams, one way he's bringing value to the team.