Penn State Football Urged to Hire ‘Stud’ Head Coach as James Franklin Replacement
Penn State Football is still very early in the process of finding a replacement for former head coach James Franklin.
Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft stated Monday that Penn State would undergo a “nationwide search” for a coach who can “achieve excellence at the highest level.”
For the past three days, seemingly every media talking head from every network has weighed in on Franklin’s firing and potential replacements for the Nittany Lions‘ former head coach.
So far, there have been over a dozen names listed as potential replacements through different media outlets this week.
However, on Wednesday, one of the more influential media members for college football over the past few seasons, CBS’s Josh Pate, weighed in on the perfect replacement for James Franklin at Penn State, listing just one single replacement: Matt Campbell, Iowa State’s head coach.
The Case for Penn State Football Hiring Matt Campbell
On his Josh Pate’s College Football Show Monday, Josh Pate laid out the argument for Penn State to go after just one candidate in their search for James Franklin’s replacement.
Pate stated that, “some folks are going to overthink the room” with Penn State opening early. “Penn State is not the only major job that’s going to come open” this year,” Pate continued.
As Penn State begins its coaching search, Pate believes Campbell would check every box Kraft has in mind.
“I’m going to do you a favor,” Pate said. “Pate State Committee is just running coaching searches over here for you guys free of charge. Matt Campbell is the best candidate available out there. He’s the best candidate out of all the lists that I’ve seen out there. Are you looking for flash? Or are you looking for a football coach? If you’re looking for flash, look elsewhere.
“If you’re looking for a stud football coach, he’s just in plain sight. He’s right there at Iowa State. Iowa State was in a conference title game last year. Iowa State is horrible historically, and Matt Campbell has won consistently there. What Matt Campbell has done at Iowa State is right on par with what some other coaches have done in literal national championship runs at more major programs.”
Pate finished with a final plea for Campbell, “so many people are going to ask who I would hire. I’d hire Matt Campbell in a nanosecond. If you can get him.”
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Matt Campbell’s Track Record Makes Him a Strong Candidate for Penn State
From a media member that is extremely plugged in all over the country, this is quite an endorsement for Matt Campbell.
For a program that was only bowl-eligible three times in the decade before Campbell got there, Campbell has been consistently successful at Iowa State.
Over his 10-year tenure leading the Cyclones, Campbell has an overall record of 69-53 (.566 winning percentage) and has been bowl eligible in seven of his nine full seasons at the helm.
Campbell also led the Cyclones to the program’s first 11-win season in 2024, finishing ranked 18th in the country by the College Football Playoff committee. Campbell has finished the season ranked in the AP Poll in two seasons in his tenure (with a program-high ranking of 9th in 2020 following a 9-3 campaign) and matching the number of seasons the program has finished ranked in its history before Campbell.
Where Campbell sits on Pat Kraft’s list of candidates remains to be seen, but Pate’s endorsement is certainly eye-catching for Penn State fans if Kraft does indeed pursue Campbell for Penn State’s opening.
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