STATE COLLEGE – The flip of the calendar to November presents a full month of five games for Penn State, starting with a noon tilt with Maryland on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

On Halloween eve, James Franklin fielded questions from fans about various issues surrounding his team during his weekly radio show. The coach did disclose that, for the holiday, he was dressing up as the snowman Olaf and one of his daughters would be Princess Elsa from the 2013 Disney hit "Frozen."

Penn State's coach also answered questions about football. Here are some highlights:

Penn State's punting problem

The Nittany Lions punting woes were rather noticeable in last Saturday's loss against No. 13 Ohio State. Eight punts – split evenly between Chris Gulla and Daniel Pasquariello – averaged just 34.5 yards a kick, drawing eventual groans from the sellout crowd.

Penn State is averaging just 36.5 yards per punt this season, the worst mark in the Big Ten. A lot of those kicks have sailed out of bounds, but Franklin noted there will be a new approach this week against the Terrapins.

"We've taken ball location out of it and said we're going to put the pressure on the other 10 guys," Franklin said. "And have just said 'Kick it as far as you possibly can, I don't care where it goes, from the left sideline to the right sideline, just please kick it far.' "

Franklin said earlier in the week that it would be a competition between the two punters to who starts Saturday, and maintained that Thursday, adding it will likely be a "game day decision." The coach also said he could rotate between the two if warranted, as he did against the Buckeyes.

Gulla has had the nod in six of Penn State's first seven games, and averages 37.3 yards on 27 punts. Meanwhile, Pasquariello has averaged 36.1 yards on seven kicks.

Update on Keiser

Franklin briefly addressed the situation of hospitalized safety Ryan Keiser on Thursday.

"He is doing really well," Franklin told the crowd at Damon's. "I have talked with his mom and his wife earlier today, and he's doing extremely well."

Keiser, a senior, was injured at a practice last Thursday and is recovering from a bowel injury and a fractured rib at Hershey Medical Center.

Using 'best player in all three phases'

In addition to losing Kesier, Penn State also will be without fellow senior Zach Zwinak for the rest of the season, after the running back injured his lower left leg or foot on the opening kickoff against Ohio State.

Thursday, one fan with a football background asked Franklin why a player who has been such an integral piece of Penn State's offense in the last three seasons would be playing on special teams.

"We're going to play our best players in all three phases," Franklin responded. "Guys can get hurt on offense, guys can get hurt on defense, guys can get hurt on special teams. We're going to do that our whole time here. If we have a special player, we're going to play him in as many areas as we possibly can where they can make an impact."

Zwinak, who totaled 1,989 rushing yards in the last two seasons, had 112 yards and three touchdowns on 40 carries in six games this season.