Penn State head coaching hot board 1.0

Penn State is embarking on a high-profile coaching search after bringing an end to the James Franklin era. Penn State removed Franklin as head coach after a 3-3 start to the 2025 season marred by historic losses in back-to-back games as heavy favorites and quickly falling out of the College Football Playoff picture despite starting the season ranked No. 2 or No. 3 in the major polls. Franklin owns a career coaching record of 128-60 and was 104-45 in his 11-plus seasons at Penn State with a Big Ten title and one College Football Playoff appearance. Franklin also coached Penn State to victories in the Rose Bowl, Fiesta Bowl (twice), and the Cotton Bowl.

Penn State is prepared to cover the hefty buyout of Franklin, reported to be around $50 million give or take, although contract terms suggest Penn State may not have to go that deep into debt for the buyout once Franklin lands another coaching job. In the meantime, Penn State is locking in on its own coaching search, and athletics director Pat Kraft is confident the Penn State job has much to offer to top-quality candidates.

As Penn State's coaching search progresses and more news reports surface along the way, the hot board will get updated as needed as some coaches will be removed or added. To get us started, we are casting a wide net with a large number of names that have been floated out there this week by multiple outlets or media personalities, or just some names I have in mind as potential options. And some may just be names that fans may float for no good reason! But this is our starting point as we dig into this Penn State coaching search, which may be the biggest one of the year.

Matt Rhule, Nebraska head coach

Some may consider Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule to be the leading candidate for the job, or at least the most likely coach to end up being hired by Penn State. Rhule was the head coach at Temple when Penn State AD Pat Kraft was with the Owls, and Rhule is a former Penn State player who has always been fond of his alma mater. Rhule has done impressive work in building up Temple and Baylor and has Nebraska off to a good start this season.

Curt Cignetti, Indiana head coach

Arguably, the top candidate on the market right now is Curt Cignetti of Indiana. Cignetti has soared with the Hoosiers and has quickly turned the perennial Big Ten doormat program into a legitimate national title contender. Cignetti and his family have a strong Pennsylvania football history, and he is a proven winner. A former assistant at Alabama with Nick Saban, a proven winner at James Madison, and now a top-tier coach at Indiana, Cignetti would deliver results with he resources available at Penn State. Indiana will not let go of Cignetti easily and has already invested heavily in him, so he may have things pretty good in Bloomington.

Manny Diaz, Duke head coach

Manny Diaz spent a short period of time on Penn State's staff as a defensive coordinator for James Franklin. Diaz replaced Brent Pry when Pry left to become the head coach at Virginia Tech. He took the job after being removed as head coach at Miami. He has helped make Duke a winning team in his time in Durham. Pat Kraft previously hired Diaz to be the head coach at Temple when Kraft was the Temple AD, but Diaz left Temple after a couple of weeks when a chance to become the head coach at Miami came along.

Terry Smith, Penn State interim head coach

Terry Smith is a former Penn State player and has been a part of the Penn State staff since James Franklin came to Happy Valley. Smith will get a sort of open audition for the job for the remainder of the season as the team's interim head coach. Smith is a strong recruiter and has helped develop a good number of NFL players as a cornerbacks coach. Smith can make a case for the job with a strong showing as the interim head coach.

Fran Brown, Syracuse head coach

Fran Brown has history with Penn State AD Pat Kraft dating back to their time at Temple. Kraft interviewed Brown twice to be the head coach of the Owls but never handed him the job. Brown has been a pleasant surprise with Syracuse in his second season on the job. The New Jersey native won 10 games at Syracuse in 2024 and he scored a big upset win over Clemson early in the 2025 season, although Clemson, like Penn State, may not have been as good this season as expected.

Clark Lea, Vanderbilt head coach

Penn State hired James Franklin away from Vanderbilt. Could they end up luring away Vanderbilt's coach again? Clark Le has Vanderbilt playing at a level of success the program really hasn't seen since Franklin left for the Penn State job, and his profile is clearly rising with Vandy's performance this season. If Penn State is to get a coach from the SEC, Clark Lea could be the most likely candidate.

Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri head coach

Since we are talking SEC coaches, we can throw Eli Drinkwitz into the conversation as another potential option. Drinkwitz would likely bring with him an offensive flair that has seen former Penn State backup quarterback Beau Pribula flourish as a starter.

Mike Elko, Texas A&M head coach

Mike Elko would be incredibly difficult to pry away from Texas A&M. The Aggies alum has Texas A&M riding high in the national polls this season and well on its way to a potential College Football Playoff berth, as well as a possible spot in the SEC championship. Plus, the pockets in College Station can be incredibly deep. While his name has appeared a few times, this would be highly unlikely.

Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss head coach

Lane Kiffin would be an interesting candidate. If nothing else, Penn State would be getting an offensive coach who would deliver results in the passing game. Kiffin is also a wizard with the transfer portal and would be able to attract plenty of recruits with Penn State's resources and investments. He is riding high with Ole Miss right now, but would Penn State give him a better overall chance at a national title?

Matt Campbell, Iowa State head coach

Matt Campbell is a name that has continued to be on the national radar as a coach who could be ready to leave Iowa State for a better opportunity. The head coach of the Cyclones since 2016, Campbell is a proven winner in his head coaching career with runs at Toledo and Iowa State. He was the MAC Coach of the Year in 2015 and a 3-time Big 12 Coach of the Year and he has a career coaching record of 104-58 as of this post. If he is looking for a bigger opportunity, Penn State would certainly offer it.

Bill O'Brien, Boston College head coach

OK, let's talk about. The former Penn State head coach is still popular enough within the Penn State community to at least warrant his name being mentioned. But things are not going so well for Coach BOB in his current position at Boston College, and he made it pretty clear that he was ready to get out of Happy Valley when he did the last time. But times are different now for the program. He was hit with a sledgehammer from the NCAA shortly after taking the job in 2012, and he would not have to deal with any of that now. It would be interesting to see O'Brien get the chance to coach an offense, specifically a quarterback, for four years. Who knows what Christian Hackenberg could have become if O'Brien had remained his coach for longer than one season? But a reunion with O'Brien is highly unlikely.

Dan Mullen, UNLV head coach

The last time Penn State was in need of a head coach, Dan Mullen's name was a popular one being thrown around at the time. Then at Mississippi State, Mullen was a coach on the rise and he took Mississippi State to the first No. 1 ranking in the College Football Playoff poll era. Mullen had a couple of successful seasons at Florida but took a few years off to work with ESPN before returning to coaching this season with UNLV. At this point in time, Mullen has UNLV off to a 6-0 start and in a position to make a run for the Mountain West Conference championship. The UNLV job has become a pretty good position in recent years, however, and Mullen may enjoy the relatively lower-profile gig. But if he keeps rolling with UNLV, Mullen would be a name to stick on the radar.

Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame head coach

Would Penn State make a run for Notre Dame's head coach? It absolutely makes sense to consider what Penn State football would be like with Freeman in charge, but it is also unlikely Freeman would leave Notre Dame to come to Penn State. Notre Dame can offer pretty much everything Penn State could and has the financial stability to match any offer necessary. If Freeman was ever to leave Notre Dame for another Big Ten job, it would probably be for his alma mater, Ohio State.

Urban Meyer, Fox college football analyst

It's time to address two hall of fame coaches currently working in TV. We'll start with Urban Meyer, the former national championship coach with Florida and Ohio State. Each time Meyer has stepped away from a national championship-caliber level of competition, it was for health concerns. But his success has been coupled with some questionable storylines as well. Meyer is 61 years old, and if he still has the itch to coach college football, Penn State would be wise to explore the possibility of bringing him out of retirement. Meyer would deliver instant credibility as a program serious about taking the next step toward winning a national championship, even if he has been working in TV since 2022.

Nick Saban, ESPN college football analyst

The other hall of fame coach working in TV that people will mention as a wish list candidate is Nick Saban. It is impossible to argue with Saban's track record as a 7-time national championship head coach and 11 SEC titles. Saban is arguably the greatest coach of all time. But that means he has nothing more to prove in the game, and he willingly walked away from Alabama as the culture and nature of the game was evolving to a place Saban didn't really want to mess with anymore. Saban may get annoyed having to work with Pat McAfee on ESPN's College GameDay, but he isn't about to leave to coach again at 73 years of age.

Joe Brady, Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator

Let's take a look at a couple of NFL assistants next. The first one that comes to mind would have to be Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady. Brady was a graduate assistant for James Franklin in 2015 and 2016, and he has continued to be well-regarded as an offensive genius. He was instrumental in LSU's championship run in 2019 as the passing game coordinator with Joe Burrow and has enjoyed life in the NFL since 2020. He has been with the Bills since 2022, starting as a quarterbacks coach and rising in the ranks to be the interim offensive coordinator in 2023 and assuming the full-time role in 2024. Many feel he will be a head coach at some point, although he could be landing an NFL job in the near future.

Al Golden, Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator

Al Golden needs almost no introduction at this point for Penn State fans. A former Penn State player and assistant coach under Joe Paterno, Golden has head coaching experience at Temple and Miami and has been working in the NFL for the majority of his time since 2016. The exception to that was a three-year run on the Notre Dame staff as a defensive coordinator, in which he coached against Penn State in the College Football Playoff last season. Golden is similar to Rhule in that the Penn State job may be considered a dream opportunity that may not come their way again.

Jon Gruden, former NFL head coach

One popular name that will always be thrown around for a head coaching job search is Jon Gruden. The Super Bowl championship head coach has spent the bulk of his coaching career working in the NFL and is notable for his work with quarterbacks. It has been a long time since Gruden last worked in the coaching game at the college level (his last college job was as a wide receivers coach for Pittsburgh in 1991), so this may not be the name you actuially want in charge of a college program today.

D'Anton Lynn, USC defensive coordinator

We have mentioned a few former Penn State players on this list already. But how about a couple of others who have actually played in the Big Ten era? USC's defensive coordinator, D'anton Lynn, is a coach who has been on the rise in recent years. After coaching in the NFL from 2014 through 2022 in a variety of roles, including as a secondary coach for Bill O'Brien with the Houston Texans, Lyn has established himself as a reputable defensive coordinator at UCLA (2023) and USC (2024-now).

Bobby Engram, Washington Commanders wide receiver coach

Penn State's all-time leading wide receiver is a well-respected coach who has worked a few jobs since getting into coaching. He has had stints with the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens, and now the Washington Commanders in the NFL. He has also worked some college jobs with Pittsburgh and Wisconsin. Engram may not be a head coach for Penn State, but his name may be one worth watching when it comes time to filling the coaching staff as a potential offensive coordinator.

A quick sidenote: Engram and Lynn coached on the same staff with the Baltimore Ravens in 2021.

Brian Hartline, Ohio State offensive coordinator

Penn State made a move to hire away Ohio State's defensive coordinator last year. Could it go after the offensive coordinator of the Buckeyes for its next move? There has already been some speculation Penn State is looking at Brian Hartline as a potential coaching candidate, as he is one of the top coordinators on the rise right now. The Ohio State alum has spent his entire coaching career with the Buckeyes so far, starting as an offensive quality control assistant in 2017 and ascending to his current role as offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. Ohio State's track record with wide receivers since 2018 is worth respecting, especially given Penn State's struggles to create sustained success at the position.

Larry Johnson Sr., Ohio State defensive line coach

Or is it time to finally bring Larry Johnson Sr. home with a long-awaited chance to lead the Penn State program. The time may have passed for this to happen, unfortunately. Johnson Sr. remains highly respected as a top defensive line coach though. Johnson Sr. was on Penn State's coaching staff from 1996 through 2013 before Urban Meyer brought him to Ohio State in 2014.

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This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Penn State head coaching hot board 1.0