Penn State’s James Franklin proud of Sean Clifford after physical Michigan game: ‘He was beat up’

STATE COLLEGE — Sean Clifford took hit after hit Saturday, but each time, the Penn State quarterback pulled himself up from the Beaver Stadium grass, even if it seemed to take a little more effort every time.

In Penn State’s 21-17 loss to Michigan, Clifford was sacked seven times and hit four more times. Wolverines pass rushers Aidan Hutchinson (three sacks, one forced fumble) and David Ojabo (two sacks, one forced fumble, two quarterback hits) were the main culprits over the course of the breezy, cold afternoon.

Still, Clifford stood in to complete 23 of 43 passes for 205 yards and a touchdown, and excluding the yardage from his seven sacks, Clifford rushed nine times for 60 yards. As has been the case since Clifford was hurt at Iowa on Oct. 9, it was a gutsy effort from the redshirt senior that ultimately fell short.

Clifford’s effort wasn’t lost on coach James Franklin.

“I’m proud of Sean,” Franklin said Tuesday afternoon. “Sean’s a competitor. He’s tough. He’s given everything he can to this program and to this university and his teammates, but he was beat up. He was getting hit too many times. I think we had five hits besides the sacks, so I’m proud of him.

“I actually literally just got done meeting with him about an hour ago, I guess it was, and he is battling his tail off. I love him, and I’m super proud of him, and I know he’s going to have a great week of practice this week and I know he’ll do the same thing and play his tail off on Saturday.”

Clifford didn’t address the media after Saturday’s loss, which is a rarity for the quarterback, who has been a consistent voice for the Nittany Lions this season.

On the season, Clifford is 222 of 354 passing (62.71%) for 2,576 yards with 17 touchdowns to six interceptions.

Clifford’s Penn State career could be winding down — last week, he said he hasn’t thought on whether he might return for a sixth year to take advantage of the NCAA waiver granting players an extra season of eligibility — with two more games left in the regular season.

The Nittany Lions host Rutgers next for Senior Day at Beaver Stadium. The game is scheduled to kick off at noon, and it will be televised on Big Ten Network.