While I am sure this news was not greeted with much more than a groan from Nittany Lions fans, it is important to understand the position the school is currently in.  Erickson has already announced his departure date, and the search for his replacement is ongoing. Put yourself in a potential candidates position.  You are interviewing to run one of the largest athletic departments in the country, at what we will call a tumultuous time in its history.  Your boss, the University President, has already said he’s gone 18 months from now.  Do you take that job?  An Athletic Director is essentially the head of a multimillion dollar corporation, with significant responsibilities, and expectations.  In much the same way a Fortune 500 CEO wants assurances from his boss (usually a Board, or Chairman) that there is some stability, I would suspect any AD candidate would desire the same.  Knowing your boss is leaving next year isn’t exactly the kind of situation most candidates are itching to jump into.

Yes, I want Erickson and Joyner to move on as soon as possible.  That’s another topic for another day, but that moment will be another big step in “moving forward”, as PSU reminds us we need to do.  But I also want my alma mater to fill both roles with the best possible candidates.  That cannot happen in the case of the AD, until the next University President is hired.

Follow VBR Lead Editor Matt de Bear on Twitter for the latest on Penn State

Penn State AD promises that a head coaching search is taking place. We hope so.

Dear Mr. Joyner,
I know you are probably reading this, because you have admitted that you read blogs and mine is certainly worth reading. I’m not sure where you find time during your stressful, 2 month search to find the perfect person, but you do. Thank you for your time.
While I have you, I’d like to say thank you for the vague non-answers to every one of our questions. I don’t blame you. What do you owe us? We’re only the people who pay for 108,000 over-priced tickets to fill up your beautiful stadium 8 times a year every fall… in rain, sleet and sometimes a random 14 inches of snow in October. Why do we deserve to know anything about what’s going on, right? You’re in charge and you should make that clear every time a microphone enters your personal space. Hell, if you really want to show us who the boss is, you could just avoid hiring a coach at all! That would show us! (more…)