After Penn State fired James Franklin from the head coaching position, a vacancy opened up in Happy Valley, a position that hasn't been available for over a decade.
Surely a new era is underway for the Nittany Lions (3-3, 0-3 Big Ten) in attempts to open up many possibilities for the future on the gridiron inside Beaver Stadium. Those possibilities stem from the vacancy at the helm, where fans and those around the blue and white ramp up speculation for who can lead going forward.
3 current head coaches who Penn State is most likely to contact first
While college football names of coordinators and coaches alike are thrown around, there's one contender with Penn State ties that is being massively overlooked.
The Nittany Lions men's hockey team plays its games nearby Beaver Stadium at Pegula Ice Arena and is on its way to becoming a 2025 powerhouse in the college hockey landscape.
So why does this matter?
Owners of the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres Terry and Kim Pegula provide naming rights to Penn State's hockey arena.
The Bills evolved into one of the most prolific offenses in the NFL, led by blooming coaching star and offensive coordinator Joe Brady. Head coaching consideration already swarms around him, but can a college job enter the mix?
Brady's unit has a top-five offense in the 2025 season, with both passing and rushing showing up behind reigning league MVP Josh Allen. The 36-year-old coordinator is only in his second year in the gig and was named a finalist for the AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year Award the year prior.
The Pegulas can contribute one more thing to Penn State by bringing Brady to Happy Valley for some much-needed coaching stability, given their connection to the coaching mastermind.
Although Brady is young and inexperienced, he is an expert in the passing game, which can help improve the air attack that has consistently challenged the Nittany Lions. Likewise, he can maneuver the run game, something that dipped in production for Penn State in 2025 over the first six games. While the blue and white has been defensive-minded, Brady can paint a new picture of the program.
His youth also allows him to change that identity in State College, which can last for decades if given enough time in control.
Brady's coaching career has been relatively short so far. He started in 2013, bouncing to six different teams. However, a long-term home is in his near future whether that's in Buffalo or with another NFL or college program.
His connections to Happy Valley don't end with the Pegulas either. Notably, Notably, he contributed to The Nittany Lions' 2015-16 season as a graduate assistant when they won the 2016 Big Ten Championship.
Brady and another leader in this race for the Penn State job, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule, actually shared a point in their careers when they both spent the 2020-21 season with the Carolina Panthers. Rhule was the head coach and Brady served as his offensive coordinator.
While the stint in the pros didn't go to plan for either in the pair, they both had positive coaching experiences since, rebranding themselves as some of the coaching world's best in the college and NFL landscapes.
There has been little indication of who will get the coveted Penn State coaching job, but it can be assured that there will be no shortage of candidates. That list clearly doesn't end in college football either.