Penn State football: A look at coaching search and who should be top choice

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The leading candidates to become Penn State’s next head football coach have changed frequently since James Franklin was fired Oct. 12.

First, there were Matt Rhule (Nebraska) and Curt Cignetti (Indiana), who have since signed contract extensions with their respective schools.

Then the hot names became Lane Kiffin and, perhaps the most preposterous of all, Urban Meyer.

Even now, less than four weeks from the end of the Nittany Lions’ regular season, there doesn’t seem to be a clear-cut choice.

Just in the last several days, Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, Louisville coach Jeff Brohm and Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz have taken their turns as the presumed favorite.

Missouri head football coach Eli Drinkwitz is 44-26 in six seasons with the Tigers, including 27-7 since 2023. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Here’s something to remember: No one knows who the next coach will be, including Penn State director of athletics Pat Kraft. It remains a mystery, like many things with the 2025 Lions.

In this day and age of big-time college athletics, it would be surprising if Kraft picked someone without head coaching experience who hasn’t dealt with roster management, NIL and budgeting time and resources.

“I’m not shy to admit that I’m here to win national championships,” Kraft said the day after he fired Franklin.

Which is why Kraft won’t rule out anyone for the time being and why he’s shooting for the stars, Kalen DeBoer of No. 4 Alabama and Mike Elko of No. 3 Texas A&M.

To land DeBoer or Elko, Kraft needs the Crimson Tide or the Aggies to stumble. Alabama (7-1) has LSU, Oklahoma, Eastern Illinois and Auburn remaining in the regular season. Texas A&M (8-0) has to play Missouri, South Carolina, Samford and Texas.

For the sake of argument, let’s say both teams win out, meet in the Southeastern Conference title game and receive a berth in the College Football Playoff.

And don’t forget that the Tide and the Aggies have more money than Penn State. So if they want to keep their guys, they will pay them.

The second tier of candidates includes Brohm, Drinkwitz, Brent Key of Georgia Tech and Clark Lea of Vanderbilt.

Brohm, Key and Lea are coaching at their alma maters. Would they consider leaving for a richer contract and a program with more resources?

The 54-year-old Brohm is in his 12th season as a college head coach and his third season at Louisville, where he’s 26-9 and 7-1 this season. He has built a strong reputation as an offensive mind; his teams have finished in the top 20 nationally in pass offense in eight of the last nine seasons.

Born and raised in Louisville, Brohm posted a 36-34 record in six seasons (2017-22) at Purdue with wins over No. 2 Ohio State, No. 2 Iowa and No. 3 Michigan State. The Boilermakers had nine wins in the four seasons before he arrived.

He went 12-2 at Western Kentucky before leaving for Purdue.

The 42-year-old Drinkwitz, an Arkansas native, has led Missouri to a 44-26 record in six seasons, including 27-7 since the start of the 2023 season.

He’s only the second Tigers coach with more than one 10-win season. He’s an offensive-minded coach who has learned from Gus Malzahn, who’s now the Florida State offensive coordinator.

Before taking the Missouri job in 2020, he guided Appalachian State to a 12-1 record in 2019, his only season there.

One drawback is that he’s 7-16 against top 25 opponents, including 1-9 against top 10 foes.

The 47-year-old Key, an Alabama native, has guided Georgia Tech to three straight winning seasons for the first time since 2011-13. He has a 26-16 record in his third full season, which includes a 7-1 record against Atlantic Coast Conference ranked opponents.

He was a four-year starter at guard for the Yellow Jackets and offensive line coach at Alabama for Nick Saban from 2016-18. He would stress physicality at Penn State.

Lea, who turns 44 next week, was born and raised in Nashville. He’s 23-35 in six seasons at Vanderbilt, but 14-8 since 2024. He is a disciple of Elko, having worked with him on the defensive staff at Bowling Green, Wake Forest and Notre Dame.

Last year, he led the Commodores to an upset win over No. 1 Alabama, their first victory over a top five opponent. This year, they’re 7-2 with wins over No. 10 LSU, No. 11 South Carolina and No. 15 Missouri and losses to Alabama (30-14) and Texas (34-31).

Kraft’s job might depend on this hiring. Will he hire the next coach between Penn State’s regular season finale Nov. 29 at Rutgers and the National Signing Day on Dec. 3? Will – or can – he wait until after the first round of the CFP on Dec. 19-20?

The most important date is Jan. 2, the first date that the NCAA transfer portal is open. In all likelihood, Penn State will need to find a lot of roster help there. So expect Kraft to have someone in place well before then.

If DeBoer and Elko, a New Jersey native and Penn grad, decide to stay at their respective schools, my first choice would be Brohm. He’s a smart offensive coach who’s 4-4 against top five teams, including a 24-21 win over No. 2 Miami last month.

Old friend Manny Diaz is a dark-horse candidate who is familiar with Penn State after he had two standout seasons as defensive coordinator in 2022-23. He has a 13-7 record as Duke’s head coach, including 5-3 this season. Don’t rule him out.

Let the coaching carousel continue to spin.

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