Terry Smith to stay with Penn State football, head coach Matt Campbell

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Terry Smith, the beloved Penn State football interim head coach, will remain on the Nittany Lions’ new coaching staff.

Smith will serve as associate head coach and presumably lead one of the position groups under incoming head coach Matt Campbell, according to a report from 247Sports.

Campbell, who led the Iowa State Cyclones for a decade, agreed to terms Friday to lead the Nittany Lions and end the university’s 54-day-long search to replace the James Franklin.

Smith was the former PSU receiver and longtime assistant coach who took over the team in mid-October after Franklin was fired. The well-respected, and proclaimed “truth-teller” in football headquarters, helped adjust the Lions’ offense, defense and player rotation to lead an energized charge down the stretch.

Penn State won its three final games of the regular season, and nearly upset No. 2 Indiana, to qualify for a bowl game to be determined on Sunday.

He should be key in player retention for the current team and help Campbell navigate the Penn State landscape.

Smith, 56, had worked primarily as the cornerbacks coach and defensive recruiting coordinator under Franklin since 2014. He added an assistant head coach title in 2016 and associate head coach in 2021.

Athletic director Pat Kraft said this about Smith Friday night in a prepared statement:

“I want to express my deepest gratitude to Coach Terry Smith for stepping up when we needed him the most and for rallying our team to finish this season with three straight wins. Coach Smith bleeds blue and white and pours his entire heart and soul into Penn State Football. I’m deeply grateful for his commitment to our University, and I am excited that he will continue to be a part of this program.”

Smith was emboldened, and sometimes overwhelmed, by the growing wave of support from Penn State fans, former players and his current team. After the victory over Nebraska on Senior Day several of the Nittany Lions held up “Hire Terry Smith” signs and lettermen, such as former quarterback Michael Robinson, were public in backing him.

Smith, who grew up in Aliquippa, Pa., spent more than a decade as a prominent coach at Gateway High near Pittsburgh and is a recruiting fixture in Western Pennsylvania. He began his college coaching career in 2013 at Temple under another former Nittany Lion, Matt Rhule, now the head coach at Nebraska.

Frank Bodani covers Penn State football for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at  fbodani@ydr.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Terry Smith to stay with Penn State football and coach Matt Campbell

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