Penn State's James Franklin defends fourth down conversion attempt in loss to Michigan

Penn State football coach James Franklin defended his decision to go for it on fourth down late in the Nittany Lions' 24-15 defeat to No. 3 Michigan on Saturday.

With 4:21 left in the game and Penn State down 17-9, the Nittany Lions offense sat at their own 30-yard line after two consecutive incomplete passes led to a fourth-and-6. Franklin could have opted to punt the ball away, trusting his defense to get a stop and put the ball back in the offense's hands. Instead, he chose to attempt the fourth down.

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That decision to go for it didn't work out: Drew Allar's pass fell to the turf at Beaver Stadium as the Nittany Lions turned the ball over on downs. Speaking to reporters after the game, Franklin provided a defense for the choice:

“At some point you’re going to have to be aggressive," Franklin told reporters after the game. "You’re going to have to make one of those calls like we did in the first half (on the touchdown drive). ... At that point in the game we can’t just keep giving the ball back to Michigan.

"It puts our defense in a tough spot if we don’t pick it up but we’re going to have to pick up one of those fourth downs to stay on the field to give us the best chance to win the game. I think, if you punt, in that situation, at that point in the game, against that team, you may not get the ball back."

After the Nittany Lions failed to convert, Michigan used its good field position to its advantage on the first play of the drive: Running back Blake Corum found a seam in the middle of the line and burst through for a 30-yard touchdown, his second score of the game.

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That touchdown essentially iced the game for Michigan, though the Nittany Lions did get the ball back with enough time to muster its second touchdown of the game. The ensuing 2-point conversion failed, keeping the score at 24-15, a two-score advantage for Michigan.

A Corum 9-yard run on third-and-5 on Michigan's ensuing drived was the decider, giving the Wolverines their first ranked win of the season and dropping Franklin to 3-16 against top-10 teams during his Penn State coaching career.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: James Franklin defends decision to go for it on fourth down vs. Michigan