Penn State Sports Magazine
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1 8 N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 1 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Penn State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich is, in the kindest sense of the word, a maniac. In his first year on head coach James Franklin's staff, Yurcich has shown that he's a straight shooter who isn't afraid to jump into a practice drill to dem- onstrate a technique and is never shy about offering up coaching pointers to any player on his offense. He's espe- cially animated when he's working with the quarterbacks, both on the practice field and on game day. He's constantly moving, talking and taking a hands-on approach to make his players better. Franklin has said that he long admired the Euclid, Ohio, native and Pennsylva- nia State Athletic Conference alum, and it's not hard to see why. He's a guy who "loves plays," Franklin said, and has a brilliant football mind. Yurcich met with reporters prior to the Iowa game to share his thoughts on the offense, his overall philosophy and more. QUESTION: How would you assess the state of the offense? YURCICH: "The fact is, we've done enough on offense to win, and as long as we continue to do that, that's really all that matters. We're never going to reach a point where we're satisfied. So regardless of what we've scored, what we've gained, how we've thrown it and run it, we're never satisfied. That's the mentality we're always going to have, regardless of any statistical analysis. "But we know this: Securing the foot- ball is most important, scoring points is second and being explosive is third. It takes everybody. It takes everything. And when it doesn't go well, it's usually related to a combination of things, and there's so much to it. "That's why it's such a beautiful game. You need all 11 on every play. It's my responsibility to make sure that these guys are doing the best they can together. As long as we continue to work, we have confidence that we're going to get the most out of our guys." QUESTION: How do you create bal- ance on offense? YURCICH: "A lot of times, to be quite honest with you, the defense is going to dictate whether it's run or pass. If they've got too many guys up, well then, the numbers say we should throw it. You can't beat your head up against the wall. You have to take what the de- fense gives you. "So, whether that's an RPO [run-pass option], or whether it's a play pass, or whether it's just a true drop back, or quick game, you're trying to take ad- vantage of how many safeties are deep, what their depths are and all that sort of thing." QUESTION: James Franklin said you "love plays." What does that mean? YURCICH: "The creativity and that sort of thing, you're just trying to cre- ate space. It's not about sex appeal, it's about efficiency. And so that's all we're trying to do. We're trying to disguise, free guys up and put our best players in space. So if that takes me standing on my head, then I'm going to stand on my head. It doesn't really matter how we get there, as long as we do it. "We've just got to make sure that we continue to be creative and innovative. The one thing you know about a little bit of innovation in your offense is that the players really enjoy it. They love it. They embrace it. "The best part about being here is Coach Franklin's culture, and how he and the staff and everybody around this program have kind of gotten all to- gether. They embrace everything that's introduced to them with an eagerness to learn it and master it. "And that's what it takes, because we can all sit here and think of a really cool play. But if the players don't own it, then it won't matter what the design is. So really, the players need the credit, not necessarily the creation or innova- tion. It's really the execution that it boils down to, so hats off to our guys." QUESTION: Do you have a favorite play? YURCICH: "I don't have a favorite. My favorites are touchdowns." ■ Through Penn State's first six games, Yurcich's unit was ranked seventh in the Big Ten in both scoring (28.3 points per game) and total offense (396.7 yards a contest). PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL Sitting Down With Penn State Offensive Coordinator Mike Yurcich