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PENN STATE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 18, 2018

Mark Allen

University Park, Pennsylvania

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by senior running back Mark Allen.

Q. How comfortable are you and Miles and Ricky in the rotation that you guys have been going through the past few weeks?
MARK ALLEN: It's been good. Coach Seider and the coaching staff does a great job rotating. Whenever we get an opportunity we take advantage of it, follow behind those big guys and take advantage of the plays we get.

Q. Is it just let's try and maximize this as much as possible because you know that it's kind of a finite kind of time that you're going to get?
MARK ALLEN: That's the thing, you never know if it's a finite team. Coach Seider stressed it; when you're in the field play like you're going to be in there the whole entire time. If you play like it's a one-play mentality or you're going out after this series, you're not going to get the job done. So you have to play like you're the starter and take advantage of all the reps that you get.

Q. You, Nick, Johnathan all came in together and focused on running back. I'm sure you all had ambition of being starting running backs for Penn State University. How do you help each other as your paths have diverged and switched positions and sometimes even being buried on a depth chart? How have you helped each other through that process through the five years?
MARK ALLEN: Just stay level headed and maintain our work ethic and just keep pushing forward. And Johnathan Thomas is a great example of that. He's a guy that the whole team looks up towards. Me, myself, he's been through a lot and it's paid off. Not paid off when you wanted it to pay off, but when it does come and if you continue to prepare the way that you should, you can take advantage of it just like Johnathan did. That's the way that we all have been doing it this entire time.

Q. How have you seen Sean Clifford kind of develop? Everyone says he's competitive. Any stories that sticks in your head about his competitiveness, where he really showed that to you?
MARK ALLEN: I actually have a vivid story. This summer, in workout, Sean Clifford was beating me in some hill workouts, which is kind of ridiculous. But he was actually working extremely hard. The kid has, like, a great work ethic.

And he continues to wait for his shot as well. And when he gets to the game he takes advantage of it every time.

Q. What do you know about winning a game where a team gets punched in the mouth first that you didn't know when you got here? How hard is it to learn as a team, you're down 10-nothing and now you have to figure out how to win. You guys were good at that two years ago. You didn't have to worry about it last year. How does a team learn how to be tough?
MARK ALLEN: That's just the culture of Coach Franklin that he's brought to Penn State. He's had it where he was in the past, and has brung it to Penn State. It's embedded in every player, and now it's embedded in every player you can see as it turns over every game.

Q. What is that culture? What do you know how to do?
MARK ALLEN: Just as you said. I guess we know how to win. We know how to work hard, keep maintaining work ethic and going out and doing our job and executing which leads into carrying over winning games.

Q. After Ricky had a couple of fumbling issues at Pitt, as a senior, as a veteran, what did you kind of tell him? Did you pull him off to the side and kind of let him know everything was all right?
MARK ALLEN: If you didn't notice me and Miles are the first two people that come up to him. Things happen and mistakes are made, but you can't stay into those same mistakes the whole time, or keep letting it carry over to practices or games or it's just going to keep messing with him.

Told him to have the next-play mentality and keep working because he has tremendous talent and we all see it in our B room.

Q. James said a couple weeks ago that he's turned this team over to you guys more so than usual in terms of -- I think he said it was training on and training off, letting the upperclassmen dictate how things go. What does it mean to you that maybe he's being a little bit more hands-off with those kinds of things?
MARK ALLEN: That's just team policies and I just -- that's just team policies. That's it.

Q. Has he been -- has he let you guys dictate this before? Because the way he spoke it sounded like this is new.
MARK ALLEN: It's just the team. Not much I can say about it it's just team policy and we just keep it within the team.

Q. One of the other things he brought up is the book legacy, that the locker rooms never looked cleaner, it's about doing the little things. When did he mention that and how did he relay that message?
MARK ALLEN: That's been like since he's been here. He's always preached that the little things are key. We actually watched a video not too long ago about Ed Reed preaching something similar, saying picking up your towels and storing. You don't want people cleaning up after you. It's like the little things you focus on will carry over to the big things and the big things will lead to greater things.

Q. Did you notice a big difference of the cleanliness in the locker room?
MARK ALLEN: Actually, yeah. The locker room has been better than it has ever been. People have been, like, owning up to their stuff, picking up their trash and towels. You see seniors and freshmen, and it's just making the coaches better, I think.

Q. Big Ten play is upon us. What do you see from Illinois? And how would you describe Big Ten play to someone who knows nothing about it at all?
MARK ALLEN: Like I always say we're just focussing on ourselves. If we continue to focus on ourselves each game will carry over for itself. This week we have Illinois, we're going to focus on ourselves in practice, continue to work hard, execute in practice. And Big Ten play will be Big Ten play. Every game to us. That's how we approach it.

Q. (Indiscernible) obviously he's valued in your locker room, but do you think Blake Gillikin, do you think he gets the amount of credit maybe nationally that he deserves?
MARK ALLEN: Blake Gillikin should get a lot of credit. The kid has a 4.0, never got an A-minus in his life. Punts the ball about 60 yards average. We give him credit. That's pretty much all he needs. His teammates behind his back, and his teammates continue to help him push forward and make him a better player. And that's all the support he needs, to be honest.

Q. Last time you traveled to Illinois you were a freshman, it was a loss. It was the fifth loss in seven games. Can you compare the expectations within this program internally versus where they were in that moment?
MARK ALLEN: The expectations were the same, actually. We just didn't execute, I guess, back in 2015. But now we're just focusing on ourselves. As I said before, focusing on executing the game plan we had for Illinois and we can't wait to get out there.

Q. We heard a lot last week leading into this week how the Friday game messes things up in terms of preparation and all that. What's it been like so far for you guys with not being off Monday and just the quick turnaround?
MARK ALLEN: It's game week, we just approach it the same way. It's game week, that's how we approach it. This is the game week we were dealt. They have the same week as us and that's how we have to approach it.

Q. Coach Franklin said he started preparing in the summer for all the little quirks that go into a week like this. Anything that surprised you so far about this week and just kind of how things have laid out?
MARK ALLEN: No, we've like just as a team we've had the mentality that this is just how we have to approach this game this week and we took it on a hundred percent.

Q. Pat Freiermuth elevated to a co-starter this week on the depth chart. A lot of talk about his ability as a blocker. As a running back, I'm sure you can appreciate that. Can you explain what you've seen from Pat, especially clearing rushing lanes, he sprung Miles on a big one against Pitt?
MARK ALLEN: Freiermuth is extremely good. I noticed that from camp. He's taken advantage of everything, every rep he's had and is carrying over. And he's getting more. And I have always -- I've told the coaches that in the past that he looks good and he's showing it again. And like you said, it's always good to have a good blocker.

Q. You have a lot of guys from the Maryland, DC, area on the team. How much kind of high school team pride do you take, and is there a lot of talk when your teams are playing each other, because your team was a pretty good team?
MARK ALLEN: It used to be worse a little bit, but not too many people who are on the team now can compete with my high school team. So it's just not that much trash talk that goes on.

If they want to, I'll just shut it down because it's DeMatha, but other than that, that's it.

Q. (Inaudible)?
MARK ALLEN: It was Marcus. That was in the past. Now we've got like Dan George, who is from Oxon Hill. But they can't compete. But that's about it.

Q. Is the team aware the last time you played a Friday night game was in 1982 when you won a Natty and what does that mean to you?
MARK ALLEN: I'm actually not aware of that. Like I said, it's just a regular game week for us. Doesn't matter if it's a Friday game or not. We're going to approach it the same way, we'll go execute and do what we do on any game week. It's the game we were dealt. We've been taking advantage of it doing the things we are supposed to do throughout practice and it will show up on Friday.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Mark.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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