STATE COLLEGE – Maryland coach Mike Locksley was not pleased with Penn State’s touchdown pass as time expired in the Nittany Lions’ 44-7 blowout win Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
Locksley made sure he let Nittany Lions coach James Franklin how he felt during an animated postgame handshake at midfield.
“I just asked about his family, Christmas cards, addresses, all those things,” he said. “Bullbleep is what it was. I respect the game. I’ve got a lot of respect for James, his program. I think it was bullbleep.”
Franklin and Locksley worked together for three seasons (2000-02) on Ralph Friedgen’s staff at Maryland, Franklin as the wide receivers coach and Locksley as the running backs coach.
Franklin also was Maryland’s head coach in waiting during a second stint on the Maryland staff as offensive coordinator from 2008-10 before the Terps fired Friedgen and hired Randy Edsall in 2011.
He’s now 9-2 against Maryland, including several lopsided victories.
On Saturday, Penn State backup quarterback Beau Pribula threw an incompletion on third-and-12 from the Maryland 15 with four seconds left. Pribula dropped back on fourth down and found freshman wide receiver Tyseer Denmark in the end zone as time expired.
“I get it, right?” Franklin said when asked about the late TD. “My job is to put the 3s and 4s (third-teamers and fourth-teamers) in the game. When they get in the game, they get to play football. Your 1s (first-teamers) are in the game. You’re trying to score. We’re trying to score.
“On top of that, we’re trying to play as long as we can, make the playoffs and be seeded as high as possible. Scoring as many points as we can and point differential matters. If you don’t get that, it’s really not my problem. I’m good with it.”
Warren breaks records: Tight end Tyler Warren broke one Big Ten record and one Penn State record against Maryland.
Warren had six catches for 68 yards and one touchdown, completed one pass for 9 yards and carried three times for 32 yards. For the season, he has 81 receptions for 978 yards and six touchdowns.
“He’s a beast,” Franklin said. “Everybody’s defensive game plan is to not allow 44 (Warren) to impact the game. Everybody has said that every single week and no one has done it.
“They ought to bring the Mackey Award (which goes to the nation’s best tight end) tonight, put it on a private jet, give it to him on Sunday and then he should get an invitation to New York (for the Heisman Trophy ceremony).”
He broke the Big Ten season record for catches by a tight end, which was held by Wisconsin’s Travis Beckum in 2007. He needs 6 yards to break Beckum’s season record for receiving yards by a tight end.
Warren broke the Penn State career record for touchdown catches by a tight end with his 7-yard reception in the second quarter, his 17th. He has a record-tying 130 receptions for a record 1,584 yards.
“He’s done it week in and week out,” Franklin said. “He’s a big-time player and he’s doing it with all eyes on him. He’s a special guy. His humility is impressive. He’s a stud.”
Injury report: Wide receiver Harrison Wallace III, Penn State’s second-leading receiver, did not play Saturday after being listed as questionable on the Big Ten availability report.
Wallace has 35 receptions for 579 yards and three touchdowns. Without him, Omar Evans caught four passes for 49 yards and Liam Clifford and Julian Fleming had one catch apiece.
Lions offensive guard Vega Ioane was shaken up on Nick Singleton’s 2-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, but he returned.
Linebacker DaKaari Nelson was injured on a first-quarter kickoff and did not return.
Source: Berkshire mont