Grading Penn State Football coach James Franklin’s offseason

Coaching Hires

James Franklin needed to make two coaching hires this offseason with tight ends coach Tyler Bowen going to the Jacksonville Jaguars and safeties coach Tim Banks headed to Tennessee to be the defensive coordinator. Franklin decided to make a third change as well.

After the season, Franklin made the call to move on from offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca and hire former Texas offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich.

Yurcich was available because Tom Herman had been fired at Texas, leaving his staff as free agents in a way.

No one would have blamed Franklin for brining back Ciarrocca. The offense did struggle at times in 2020, but much of that had to do with the fact that Penn State Football tried to install the brand new offense remotely due to the pandemic. A normal offseason definitely would have helped Clifford and the offense learn Ciarrocca’s system, but Franklin made an aggressive move for a guy he considers one of the best in the country.

To replace Bowen, Franklin hired former Penn State offensive lineman and analyst Ty Howle. He may not be a splashy hire, but he has a promising future as a coach and the players seem to like him. He’s done well in recruiting so far, we will see how the tight ends fare this season.

Anthony Poindexter was lured away from Purdue to be the new safeties coach. He is a high-energy guy, something the staff seemed to lack since Sean Spencer’s departure, and had a great college career at Virginia. His roots in Virginia should help Penn State’s recruiting efforts in that region and his energy will be a boost on gamedays.

Yurcich could bring Penn State’s offense back to the ways it performed under Joe Moorehead and the two position coach hires weren’t too shabby either.

Grade: A-