Penn State Coaching Search Superlatives: Who’s the Best Fit for the Nittany Lions?
Wednesday would mark one month since Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft fired James Franklin and began a national search for the Nittany Lions’ football program’s next head coach.
In the month since Franklin was let go, plenty of names have been thrown around as potential coaches to take the reins of the Nittany Lions program.
In this article, we will break down a few coaches on the list in superlative categories.
Penn State Coaching Search Superlatives, and Top Candidates
Biggest Swing: Kalen DeBoer, Alabama head coach
Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer’s name has been thrown around in the Penn State coaching search since the beginning.
The speculation is that DeBoer is not the best fit in the south, and Alabama fans could grow unhappy with DeBoer if he were to miss the playoffs for the second year in a row after taking over for legendary head coach Nick Saban.
However, as the Crimson Tide continues to win (as DeBoer has done everywhere he has coached), DeBoer has become an extremely unlikely candidate at Penn State.
Most Likely Backup Option: Manny Diaz, Duke head coach
Pat Kraft’s most likely backup option at the start of the search was Nebraska’s Matt Rhule.
The personal relationship between the two led to wide speculation that Rhule could eventually land in Happy Valley. After a contract extension by Nebraska, Rhule is most likely out as Penn State’s backup option, bringing Manny Diaz’s name squarely into the fold.
Diaz is a very familiar name for Penn State fans as the leader of the Nittany Lions’ top ranked defense in 2022 and 2023.
While Diaz is still finding his way in his second head coaching stint, he would be a solid backup option for Pat Kraft if he were to miss on all of his top options.
Worst Fit: Brian Kelly, former LSU head coach
Brian Kelly was fired earlier this month by LSU after three and a half years leading the Tiger’s program.
Although Kelly is one of the winningest active coaches in college football, he is a horrendous fit in Happy Valley.
After 12 years of James Franklin’s “family” philosophy leading the program, Kelly is the opposite extreme.
After his firing from LSU, not a single LSU commit or player came to Kelly’s defense or had a positive thing to say about the coach. Kelly would be a disaster in Happy Valley with the worst fit on the list of potential candidates.
Best Coordinator to Head Coach Option: Brian Hartline, Ohio State offensive coordinator
Brian Hartline has only been Ohio State’s offensive coordinator for a few months, but that has not reduced the speculation that he could be ready to jump to a head coaching position.
Harline has recruited and built an absolute powerhouse at the receiver position at Ohio State and has been one of the top recruiters in the country. Whether Hartline is ready to jump from a first year OC to the head coaching position at one of the top programs in the country, however, remains to be seen.
Darkhorse: Matt Campbell, Iowa State head coach
After his name came up in the first few days of the Penn State search, including by ESPN and On3’s Josh Pate, Matt Campbell’s name has been more of a whisper through the rest of the month.
Campbell has done a very solid job leading Iowa State over the past decade, including a top 15 finish in 2024. At only 45 years old, Campbell has plenty of years ahead of him to build in Happy Valley if he were the chosen candidate.
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Betting Favorite: Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri head coach
Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz might make too much sense for Penn State fans.
Drinkwitz has done well recruiting and in the transfer portal at Missouri with less resources than he would have at Penn State.
(Mandatory Credit: John Reed-Imagn Images)
Drinkwitz could also bring home former Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula and former five-star Pennsylvania quarterback Matt Zollers.
Drinkwitz checks most of the boxes laid out in Pat Kraft’s initial press conference in finding James Franklin’s replacement and should be seen as a very realistic candidate for the Nittany Lions.
Hardest to Pull From Alma Mater: Brent Key AND Jeff Brohm
This one is a tie.
Both Louisville’s Jeff Brohm and Georgia Tech’s Brent Key are currently having success at their alma maters, making it more difficult for Pat Kraft to entice them to Happy Valley.
Both could be very solid candidates at Penn State, but Kraft may have to overpay to get them to leave their current situations.
Best Fit: Mike Elko, Texas A&M head coach
Mike Elko remains the biggest potentially realistic name on the board for Pat Kraft.
Unlike Brohm and Key, Elko is coaching very far from his origins in the northeast.
While Elko has Texas A&M rolling this season, if the Aggies have an early exit from the college football playoffs, Pat Kraft could look to pull Elko back to his northeast roots this offseason.
Two potential issues pulling Elko are Texas A&M’s seemingly endless oil money that could match any offer Kraft could provide and the potential for A&M to make a deep playoff run, essentially eliminating Elko from consideration because of the transfer portal timing.
Regardless, Elko’s “culture of grit, relentless effort, integrity, now and dependability” would fit extremely well at Penn State.
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