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What James Franklin is saying ahead of Penn State’s regular-season finale

Franklin spoke mainly about his seniors, especially quarterback Trace McSorley, as they prepare for the final home game of their careers Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

Penn State head coach James Franklin, yells at the referee during a timeout against Wisconsin in the second half of an NCAA college football game in State College, Pa., Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. Penn State won 22-10.
Penn State head coach James Franklin, yells at the referee during a timeout against Wisconsin in the second half of an NCAA college football game in State College, Pa., Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. Penn State won 22-10.Read moreCHRIS KNIGHT / AP

Penn State takes on Maryland on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at Beaver Stadium.

Here's what head coach James Franklin had to say about this week:

On how quarterback Trace McSorley has handled the season:

"He's earned everything he's gotten in life. No one's given him anything. I think he's built for these types of things. I think that's why there's so much confidence and trust in our locker room and coaches with him, because all he knows how to do is walk in a room with a chip on his shoulder and prove people wrong and overcome adversity. I couldn't be more impressed, but I'm not surprised by it. He is built for this, and he's a self-made man in a lot of ways."

On McSorley and the legacy he leaves:

"For a good portion of the year while those (young) guys are trying to get adjusted and figure things out, Trace is carrying a lot of weight on his shoulders, probably too much weight. I think early on, he probably didn't get enough credit, and probably now he's getting too much criticism. That's kind of the life of the head coach and of the quarterback. But he's been just spectacular. I think his legacy is as strong as it gets."

On remembering this year's senior class:

"They came to Penn State at a very tough time, and really battled and worked like crazy to work through it. You look at their record, I think all things considered, maybe one of the most impressive senior classes in school history. … I do think there's an awareness and there's an appreciation for what this senior class and what these guys have been able to do over their time here. Some of them are four-year guys, some of them are five-year guys. It's pretty impressive when you take all things into consideration, which I don't know if a lot of people do all the time, and I think they should with these guys."

On calling a college football locker room "the greatest melting pot in the world:"

"You get 120 guys in the locker room from all different backgrounds, from all different perspectives, different ideologies, all these things. You learn about yourself. You learn about them. You learn about their backgrounds. You learn about their families. I think it's really important for our players that they hear other people that maybe had challenges or adversity. A college football locker room, there's tremendous value in that, probably more than ever right now in our society."

On whether Penn State has introduced more new offensive formations:

"I would say it's probably very similar to how it's been for the last three years. We've going to have our base things that we always do. Then each week, we'll major in something more than the other based on what the defense does and opportunities that present themselves. Then we'll always have a few new wrinkles that aren't a whole lot different for us, but we think will cause a little bit of conflict on the defense. We'll always have a little bit of that in."