Penn State Defensive Coordinator Tom Allen - 2024 Penn State Football Media Day

Max Granville Granville joining the roster so late um what were your impressions of him as a prospect looking longer term maybe this summer but this spring versus now what you have in front of you on campus and the viability of him taking a role as a freshman yeah I tell you you know it was one of those things where begin the process just wasn't what we were thinking would happen you know he was talking about being a a major R once he concluded his senior season and uh then you know when that started to transpire it was brought up you know it was like okay so you start going from thinking about a guy that's going to be here a year from now to a guy that could be here potentially in the fall which is how it kind of started and we're very excited about his athleticism you know on the film it flashes uh then you start to get to know the person and the family and and you see the fit to our program to to guy that's going to come here and care about the things that we care about and uh just do the little things the right way when you feel like he's coming really really develop because of everything that he has you know in this program and so U now that we got him here hasn't been here very long but you test him and tested out really really well kind of you expect him to uh with his track background and his athleticism coming off the edge and so I really have high expectations for Max and I feel like that he's a guy that that uh um has really really good twitch great first step quickness uh there's a lot of things National we've seen in practice only for a couple days we haven't had pads on yet those will go on today but but you can also you can tell quite a bit uh about a guy's feel for the game uh even though he's a guy will get bigger and stronger he still still has a a good understanding fundamentally with his hand work and his his footwork and placement of his hands in the Run game going against tight ends and so uh rushing the passer is kind of what he does best what he does naturally uh but obviously he'll uh become a complete player but I tell you what I'm super excited about him thrilled to have him here when we we realized he was going to be here uh which was definitely a surprise was kind of a bonus Force 2024 in the front Rich hi Tom with James last week saying that at is going to play James Franklin both and and linebacker how do you juggle his practice time how has he looked in these two practices at end and what factors will you weigh in determining where he will play yeah I think that's a a we to weak decision you know I think as we've said you know even the first couple practice has been focused on defensive end throughout the spring and the summer he obviously knows how to play you know linebacker in our system at a pretty high level and so I think that uh it'll be a game plan decision we feel like we can maximize you know his skill set in those situations and obviously just you as he moves forward with our roster the depth and he's position and where we feel that all Stacks up so obviously he's a he's a Difference Maker type guy so you want him to be able to have multiple skill sets that he can impact the game different positions and obviously when we get into our third Downs there'll be things he'll do already that will have uh the things he's done in the past at the linebacker position as well so I feel like that nothing but a an asset to us and we'll continue to balance that all out and allow him to be able to be you know totally prepared for game day whatever that Ro might be in the front here Seth hey Tom uh James talked a little bit about how this season could potentially go you know 17 games um with your kind of high energy style of coaching how do you think that fits into what could you know end up being maybe a very long season well I just think that uh there's a consistency that you must have uh you can't grow weary of doing the little things the right way every day over and over and over again and I think the you know I like to say it you know embracing the boredom of consistency uh whatever that might look like whatever that's fundamental work how you bring your energy every day and to me it's it doesn't really matter how many games we play I'm going to bring that same energy and intensity every single week but I do think in terms of how we practice and how we prepare our team you have to understand the big picture of it all and understand where you're at as a coach and how you bring that so um I'm not necessarily your guys be on an emotional High every day of practice in terms of that you got to learn how to just be consistently good every single day when your body feels a certain way and then when your body doesn't feel a certain way so it's more about your mindset and how you are thinking and not how you're feeling and so to me that's really the approach I take and so we got to be consistent and and to me no matter who we play no matter what week of the season is there has to be a standard of expectation that this is how Pence they plays defense period no matter the game no matter the week of the Season no matter the circumstances Tom Allen on the right Danny hey Tom how are you good how are you doing doing well um James said that there are six or S quarterbacks that he would feel comfortable playing um right now you know for you how have you seen that room come along and then personally what's your personal philosophy on rotating players and using multiple quarterbacks at one spot throughout the game yeah so first of all you know it was a position when I was you know first hired uh that we were concerned about you know just losing three guys from that position you know to the NFL which is an obvious you know U you know hold the FI knew we had some young talented young players and just didn't know how they were going to develop and so that became a major Focus obviously brought in two two transfers mid year that were U have turned out to be tremendous you know assess to our program in so many different ways and so uh that room has turned into a question mark into you know possibly one of our strengths of our whole defense and so I love having that depth there you think about the way the game is played now and the way we want to be able to play guys that that can and do multiple things not just in man but also in a lot of different Zone principles that we want to be able to implement as well so depth of that position is critical and I'm a big believer in playing lots of guys I've been that way my whole career uh want to have good rotation so you're able to be at your very very best at the end of the game and then now also at the end of the a season which could be a very long season that's expectation that it's going to be a long season so uh but I I think the more guys you can play the more depth you're going to create and then is where third down pack package you know second pass pass packages that we have guys that can cover guys that can tackle that's one I think coach Terry Smith done a phenomenal job was building a room full of guys that have the traits you're looking for you know the speed the twitch the the ability to to make plays in space defensively The Tackle have a physical mental toughness to them that that group has and so super excited about that group and playing to play a bunch of them in the middle ma hey Tom how you doing right here ma how you doing I'm good um in through Spring ball and now going into the fall it's the first time you've been able to have the Green Dot on defense um how much does that change what you're able to do just on the field yeah it's different you know and so I I carry the radio around you know and and give the call to the Mike linebacker and that's who right now is is wearing the green do could have different guys wearing it different situations but but at the same time uh it's an adjustment uh but I think it's a um you know another step in the direction of allowing us to maximize technology uh I think the the bigger game day adjustment probably be the iPads on the sideline but I think the Green Dot you know and how we utilize it it's going to be a lot it's going to be depend upon the offensive style and Tempo and what they choose to do with the Green Dot do they huddle do they not do they use to to to do different mechanisms to maximize things and so uh definitely so we're in the process right now is to be able to have multiple ways of of getting our calls into the defense but the Green Dot is a constant with our guys and so even when you play in Grand practice on different fields and different guys we trying to get reps with you're trying to go through and maximize that process so it's kind of a fascinating thing for me I'm not called the defense with the H communication U being a college coach my whole career in high school so uh it's new for me as well I did a lot of conversations with NFL guys I know NFL players that I've coached in college and now now wear it in the NFL and how how they you know can maximize what do they want to hear what they don't want to hear uh how can I really help them the most and so it's been a good learning process for me throughout the spring over the summer now into two days in the camp so I think it's going to be an asset to us I think it's going to allow us to really you know be more efficient in what we're doing and able to help our our linebackers give a couple Keys before the uh the microphone shuts off in the front Greg coach yep do um when you look at your defensive tackle group you have a lot of returning guys there where do you feel like as they get ready to put the pads on that group is and who are you looking at as some of the better guys or the uh you know more productive guys out of that group well I tell you what you know when you often times you talk about the ends here and rightly so but I tell you I've been impressed with the inside guys you know and and uh um a Durant to me kind of jumps out Deon at least jumps out to me those two guys and uh that hasn't really you know practice without padon it's hard to kind of tell you think at this point but we know what they can do I've coached against them and and understand the level and I just even watching Devon in the bowl game the level that he played at to me that's that's what he needs to be doing every single week you know and so um kah you isard to me is another one it's uh tremendously talented you know really big physical guy and you know Keem be and another one that can really do a lot of different things and I can go on that's a deep deep group it really is so I think the bottom line is is that you can't have enough uh big physical guys that can that can you know have good lateral movement as well and we're not a team that just sits there you know we'll be very aggressive and attacking in our style so uh they're a huge part of what we want to do and and allows us to be able to U do a great great job you know I just think that all the positions are going to play a huge huge role in this but it's always starts up front to me and be able to stop the run and then pressure the quarterback and I expect those guys be a big part of that got time for one more front right Mark Tom when we talked to Dex earlier uh this summer he mentions zi as is a starter along with KJ and Jaylen I mean do you view it that way and can you talk about the versatility of those safeties and what you can do with them yeah I I think those three young men um are as good of three safeties as you're going to have in the country and uh um very versatile you you can you know sometimes be different packages we'll be in they'll you know could all be in the game or just two of them in the game and but that rotation will be very important to us you know and so having those three guys and Zach he's probably made the biggest growth you know from last year to this year he's had a tremendous offseason even you think from Spring ball and even watching these first couple clips of of first couple practices here of this you know fall Camp I mean it's just uh a lot of just Pride you know KJ and and J Reed just have set the tone for that room and uh they just make sure everything's right they they truly run the defense I used I put that on the back which I still do but now I got another group of guys that take that that same mindset so I think that in today's game uh the way the offenses have evolved and where they spread the field out the teams we've added from the west coast and with Wisconsin going to the air rate offense just the way the big tennis change here in the last few years is is going to be very necessary for us to be able to match that and so having multiple guys in the state of positions going be got to have guys that are athletic that can play in space and make tackles in space and so I I think those three guys uh all fit the bill and they all have good size to them they all can run and they all have a lot of I would consider all three of them very high football IQ guys so I'm excited about that room thank you very much Tom we have Andy next awesome have a great day