Penn State Nittany Lions College Football Pregame Quote, 12/26/2024

Q. As you’ve looked at film, what impresses you the most about Boise State?

DREW ALLAR: Defensively, they’re a really sound unit. You don’t see many mistakes in the run game, like guys in the same gap. Not many blown coverages. So I think they’re a very sound and disciplined group, and that starts with the coaching staff. They do a great job in getting those guys aligned in the right spots.

I think the biggest thing that sticks out just about the players is just how hard they play to the whistle. They’re playing through the whistle every single snap there is. So a lot of respect for these guys. They’ve had a great season. So it’s going to be a fun matchup.

Q. What can you tell us about Grunk (Ethan Grunkemeyer) as a quarterback? As a leader in that room, how proactive have you had to be, in making sure he’s ready to go? Knock on wood you don’t get banged up, but if he has to go, how proactive have you been in helping him get ready to do what he needs to do?

DREW ALLAR: The good thing is, I haven’t really had to. That’s the way he’s wired and the way he’s motivated. He’s not externally motivated. He’s internally motivated by what he wants to accomplish in his career. Obviously, I think he has a really bright future ahead of him.

But as far as the quarterback standpoint, he can make every throw on the field; really strong arm, really accurate. I think he processes really well, especially for being a true freshman in college football. I think going against a defense like we do every day, since he’s been on campus since spring ball through fall camp and throughout the season, has helped him grow mentally. I think he’s done a fantastic job since he’s been on campus.

But I think I’ve started to see him gain that confidence in himself these last couple of weeks; and really just knows how to go about his business at the end of the day.

Q. What’s the secret sauce for this team? What makes this team different than any you’ve ever been on, and maybe any teams left in playoffs?

DREW ALLAR: I think overall it’s our culture. Obviously, I can’t speak on anywhere else, just because I’ve never been anywhere else but Penn State. But the culture inside the locker room, between players, coaching staff, and support staff is second to none.

I think that’s what makes us different at the end of the day. We all have the same goal and we’re all in alignment with each other. It’s different now, but I think that’s one of our strengths as a program in general, is just the culture. It’s been the best experience I ever could have asked for ever since I stepped on campus.

The older guys, taking the young guys under their wings and showing us the ropes. Then when it’s our time to be the older guys, like we are now, carrying that tradition on and helping out the young guys however we can. Whether it’s just managing the school day; how to be a Penn State football player at the end of the day. Or just the Xs and Os, and them asking us questions and being like a second coach for them that they can just go up and ask questions to.

I think that’s the thing that really makes us special, just how connected we are with one another and just our culture in general.

Q. You’ve expressed faith all year in the offensive line. But it seems, at least the last two games, they’ve taken it up a notch. What have you seen from the offensive line the last two games?

DREW ALLAR: I mean, I think they are just playing super fast. We always talk about winning with speed on the perimeter, but I think the offensive line has really taken that into their own game, winning with speed up front and being physical and doing whatever they can to get the job done at the end of the day.

That’s a group that takes a tremendous amount of pride in their process throughout the week and the way they prepare. Then it shows on Saturday with the way they play. There’s nobody else I would rather have up in front of me, blocking for me, protecting for me, than those guys. I think Coach Traut [Phil Trautwein] does a phenomenal job of getting them prepared and just prepping them for different blitzes and stunts that they’re going to see throughout the week. They do a great job of just executing and studying the game plan.

So we always talk about it, like, we go as the O-line goes, just because when they’re giving me time, it gives me time to go through my progressions and get the ball to our playmakers and space. And then when they’re blocking well in the run game, obviously, it’s just giving Nick [Singleton] and Kaytron [Allen] a head of steam and not getting touched ’til the second or third level. That’s when they’re at their best too.

They’ve done a great job throughout this year, and it’s been fun to see their evolution, too, just because obviously a bit of a younger O-line in terms of experience, but I think they’ve done a great job throughout this whole year in general.

Q. What did those moments late at USC and on the road at Minnesota, those clutch kind of game, potentially season-defining moments, what did they mean to you? Did those moments teach or reinforce anything for you guys as an offense?

DREW ALLAR: At the end of the day, that’s why you play football, and that’s why we come to a place like Penn State to play in games like that and have opportunities like that. Obviously, it’s what we worked for for our offseason. Like our two-minute stuff we put in, in day one or two of spring, is the stuff we’re running at the end of these games.

I think we’re doing a good job of going out and executing and not letting the moment take advantage of us. We’re staying present in that moment and just taking it one play at a time, whatever the situation is.

I think one thing that has helped us a lot is just how aware we are of the situation in general. I think that starts with Coach [James] Franklin, with the different two-minute drills that we do. Then us as players just communicating with each other in and out of the huddle, of what the situation is, or how much time we have left; if we have any time-outs; or what do we need in that situation, if it’s a field goal, touchdown, or just points in general.

I think we do a great job of being on the same page with communication. Because at the end of the day, it could be hectic and chaotic, but if you’re on the same page, you’ll get the job done. It’s when you aren’t on the same page when things don’t go right and that sort of thing. I think we do a great job of just talking about it at length. When those situations do happen, we’re just going out there and playing.

Q. This is a longer season than you’ve ever encountered at this level, and you’ve had a bunch of opportunities to do some self-evaluation, I would imagine, with some of the gaps between these postseason games. I know there’s been a lot of comparison to who you were as a sophomore. But when you look back at who you were coming out of August, entering this season, where do you feel like you’ve made the most important steps forward that can help put this team in position to win more ball games moving forward?

DREW ALLAR: I think just my confidence in general and the way I prepare. I would just say that goes along with leadership at the end of the day. I feel like that’s where the most steps I’ve taken off the field are kind of mentally.

But as far as physically, I think Coach K [Andy Kotelnicki] does a great job of preparing all of us throughout the week for the reps we’re going to get in the game and the looks that we’re expecting. Just taking those as game-like as possible throughout the week, so when the game comes, it’s second nature for me at that point. I’ve made that throw over and over and I know what to expect. The receivers know how I’m going to throw it, and I know how they’re going to run the routes.

I think it really goes into the preparation and our process that we put in throughout the week that has helped a ton. Because obviously it’s Coach K’s first year here, and first year with him. I think our confidence and just relationship has grown a lot from that, just me telling him what I need throughout the week in practice and what rep plays I want to get and why. Then he’s just trying to mix those in as much as he can, based on the practice shell that we have for that day.

Q. You’ve talked a lot about preparation. How did you prepare the last couple of days? What has your schedule been like? Did you still keep the 6:30 wake-up call to watch film? How much Boise State film did you watch? Did you even go home? Did you give yourself a break since Saturday?

DREW ALLAR: Saturday, it was a little bit different schedule for us. Sunday was earlier morning meeting so we can go home. Honestly, I started watching Boise Sunday morning. Then I drove home, only like a 3 1/2-hour drive. Then I started watching them again towards the end of the day after I got home.

Monday, I watched a little bit in the morning, and then kind of chilled out the rest of the day, spent time with family. Then Tuesday, same thing. I watched probably an hour or two in the morning.

Then obviously, yesterday we came back and we had practice. I watched them, naturally, just with the meetings that we had scheduled. Today, I was in here pretty early again. I think it was, like, 6:00 or something like that. I was in here early because we had to lift today.

I gave myself time off, but at the end of the day, I love playing ball and watching ball in general. For me, it’s kind of enjoyment, as much as it might be weird to say. I enjoy watching film. When I’m home, I’m always watching it anyway, so it’s kind of part of my routine now.

Q. How different is bowl prep this year for the postseason than it was for the Peach Bowl?

DREW ALLAR: The window was shorter this year than last year. Obviously, last year, we had an extended time to prepare for the Peach Bowl. But this year, it was a quicker turnaround, just with the Big Ten Championship, and then playing two weeks later. It’s a little bit just shorter in general.

But at the end of the day, I love that we’re a process-oriented team and our process drives the way we function as a program. For us, it wasn’t really anything different, which I like, because it’s our normal routine and habits. It wasn’t much different for me personally, but it was just probably a bit of a quicker turnaround than it was compared to last year.

Q. We heard both Andy [Kotelnicki] and James [Franklin] talking about playing to win as opposed to playing not to lose. I’m just curious, how does that come through on the day-to-day? When did you start hearing that message? What did it do for you as players to hear that from your coaches?

DREW ALLAR: Offensively, we definitely talked about it before the season. I don’t know if we talked about it in the spring or not. But for sure, we talked about it in fall camp. For me, I think it’s just our mindset at the end of the day. We’re going out there to play to win, and not playing scared or anything like that. Just sticking to your guns and letting it go when you see it. Playing with speed and winning with speed, winning your one-on-ones. It kind of all correlates itself into just playing to win.

It starts obviously with Coach K [Andy Kotelnicki] calling the game like that. But then it’s on us as players to go out and execute those play calls that he does call. Then it’s also our job to put him in those situations to call the plays that we want or our shot plays that we want to get called.

It’s our job as players to go out and put us in situations where Coach K has the freedom to call those sorts of plays. I love it. I think it’s the right mentality to have as an offense, and I think it’s part of the reason why we’ve been successful this year on offense so far.