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A big loss for the No. 7 Penn State Nittany Lions, as the anchor of well-ranked defense is out for the season. Head coach James Franklin announced it today in his bye week press conference that defensive tackle PJ Mustipher is out for the rest of the season.
DT PJ Mustipher is out for the season, James Franklin says.
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) October 13, 2021
Nothing specific on QB Sean Clifford with regard to his injury. If it was season-ending they’d address it however.
With no status update on starting quarterback Sean Clifford, freshman Ta’Quan Roberson might be the starter vs. Illinois in Happy Valley on October 23rd. Roberson struggled in relief of Clifford, and was part of the reason for a blown two-touchdown lead to the Iowa Hawkeyes last Saturday.
Franklin also addressed the comments of Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, who publicly assailed Penn State for faking injuries during the game to slow down the vaunted Hawkeyes offense. He defended the booing of Hawkeyes fans here.
Ferentz's transcribed comments here. pic.twitter.com/A5inrk27jh
— Chad Leistikow (@ChadLeistikow) October 12, 2021
Turns out one of those injuries was quite real, and will cost a future NFL player the rest of his season. Franklin responded today.
Franklin on Kirk Ferentz’s comments: “Put yourselves in the shoes of a parent. Your son is down on the field with the injury… and your stadium is booing him…I just told you PJ Mustipher is out for the year with an injury and we’re booing. Is that good for college football?”
— Onward State (@OnwardState) October 13, 2021
We’ll see if Ferentz revises or extends his remarks at some point.