Keystone Today

Surely anyone would be happy to pummel an opponent by 21 points, but Penn State Head Coach James Franklin felt this Nittany Lions (4-0) could’ve done better against the Villanova team they defeated 38-17 on Sept. 25.

CBS Sports reported that Franklin was critical of the team’s lack of intensity against the Wildcats, the same intensity that triggered Penn State’s eight-game winning streak.

Franklin fears that his players are letting the adulation from others go to their heads.

''I feel like our guys a little bit were enjoying people patting them on the back,'' he told CBS Sports. ''We talked about it all week long. I don't know if we had the same edge today that we've had for the previous three weeks.''

Quarterback Sean Clifford torched the Wildcats secondary for 401 passing yards, four scores and an interception on 19-for-26 passing.

The nonconference tilt between the Keystone State schools at Beaver Stadium in State College was a first in 70 years, with the Nittany Lions holding a 5-3-1 all-time advantage, Penn State University Athletics reported.

Penn State is 170-96-12 all-time against FBS and FCS Pennsylvania programs. So far, Villanova is 3-0 this season and ranked 11th in the STATS FCS POLL, and 7th in the FCS Coaches Poll after a 34-27 win over  Richmond the previous weekend.

In a pregame press conference, Franklin said the team has a lot of respect for Villanova.

"We've just got to be prepared. Got a lot of respect for their program and their university as a whole," he said, according to Penn State University Athletics.