Analysis: Clifford forces Franklin's hand, Levis has to start

ALTOONA, Pa. -- Entering the 2020 season, Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford looked to be in prime position to take another step forward and cement his legacy.

Four games into the season, the opposite has happened, and it reached a fever pitch last Saturday, when coach James Franklin benched Clifford in favor of backup Will Levis.

The benching was deserved, as Clifford had turned the ball over eight times on the season, including back-to-back games in which fumbles were returned for touchdowns. This after a season during which he threw seven interceptions in 12 games, three coming in a single game against Minnesota.

It begs the question, what's happened to Clifford?

He played the position well last season en route to a 10-2 record and Cotton Bowl victory over Memphis. In his first year leading the Penn State offense, Clifford threw for 2,654 yards and 23 touchdowns, but outside of the three-interception performance against Minnesota, his play didn't hurt the Nittany Lions the way it has this year.

"Turnovers continue to be a problem," Franklin said after Saturday's loss. "Not only turnovers, but turnovers for touchdowns."

Penn State has not been able to overcome those turnovers, and the result has been catastrophic. With eight turnovers, the final two coming against Nebraska, Clifford's performance has prevented the offense from gaining any sort of momentum and has put the defense in vulnerable positions, leading to even more points being allowed.

Against the Huskers, Clifford threw an interception, which was returned 55 yards to set up a field goal. The interception came on the first Penn State series of the game, but the fumble and touchdown scored as a result not only sealed his fate for the day, but also provided the Huskers with a lead that proved to be insurmountable.

Brutal. 

This season, Clifford has struggled with pressure, as he's been sacked 14 times in four games. To put that in perspective, he was sacked a total of 20 times all of last season. That pressure and inability to handle it, coupled with trying to do too much at times, has led to his struggles in the pocket. 

"Somebody's going to miss a block, it's going to happen," Clifford said after the Maryland loss. "I can't get gun-shy. If someone misses a block and we've got to throw the ball away, it doesn't mean on the very next down that everyone's not going to do their job."

Clifford often has looked uncomfortable and on many of his interceptions, the ball has been nowhere near the intended receiver. He's panicky in the pocket and forces the ball downfield, with the result being an incompletion or turnover more often than not.

And there's the trying to extend plays that just aren't there, much like the play above. Instead of a relatively small loss, continuing the play escalated to a massive loss and moved the Nittany Lions farther back than they had to be.

If it seems like this is deja vu, well that's partially because it resembles how Christian Hackenberg fared under Franklin before entering the NFL. Hackenberg was sacked 82 times during his last two seasons at Penn State.

Clifford hasn't quite been hitting-the-referee bad, but his decision-making has been as poor as any quarterback at Penn State in recent memory, and that isn't going to cut it.

The big difference is that Clifford's team has a full complement of scholarships, unlike Hackenberg's, which makes Clifford's struggles that much more concerning. And the parallels to the two not having any confidence are eerily similar, as well. 

Just as it wasn't all Hackenberg's fault, it's not all Clifford's, either. Clifford hasn't had the best of running games or an offensive line capable of blocking, but it speaks volumes that as soon as the switch to Levis was made, Penn State seemingly knew how to play football again. Even the defense was fired up about the change; take it from defensive lineman Jayson Oweh.

"I love what he brings to the game. He's a tough runner, smart and he believes in himself,"  Oweh said. "He gave us the spark that we need because we knew he was going to give us all-out on the offensive side, so we had to give all-out on the defensive side. That's the type of guy Will is. He comes in and provides a spark."

In retrospect, the decision to use Levis was about a week too late. There's no telling when Clifford will be able to regain his confidence, and confidence-building on the fly was working terribly. 

It's a desperate situation all around, but when those inside the program are excited about what the backup quarterback can do after the team has tied the worst start in program history. The decision to go with Levis not only provided Penn State with the chance to not be embarrassed for the second week in a row, but potentially delayed the Franklin-getting-fired talk for another week.

If Franklin turns back to Clifford against Iowa Saturday, the Nittany Lions will have far bigger issues to deal with than just an 0-4 start. Going back to a quarterback without confidence in himself, or the confidence of his teammates, would be a death sentence to a season that demands changes.

It's possible Clifford has taken his last snap as a starting quarterback at Penn State and deservedly so, for at least the remainder of this season. Penn State needed a change, but whether it leads to the first victory of the season has yet to be determined.