Penn State’s logic for not hiring Brian Hartline couldn’t be more short-sighted

All of college football has seemingly soured on the idea of hiring coordinators for their first head coaching job. At least the programs that view themselves as premier jobs. Rather than opt for seemingly unproven options, Florida, Auburn, Arkansas, Oklahoma State, and UCLA have turned to Group of Six head coaches to take over their programs. 

Having struck out on nearly all of its Power 4 head coaching options, Penn State may have to do the same. Athletic director Pat Kraft zeroed in on BYU’s Kalani Sitake on Monday, and by Tuesday, BYU donors had rallied to keep him in Provo. Now, he joins a list with Curt Cignetti, Matt Rhule, Mike Elko, and Eli Drinkwitz, who have all received extensions after being rumored candidates on Happy Valley. 

Now that every program can spend at least a similar amount to attract talent, Kraft may have overestimated how attractive the Penn State job really is. So, he can turn to another Power 4 head coach and try to pry Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm away from his alma mater or pluck Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key away from his. Or, he could have hired one of the most talented recruiters in the country, Brian Hartline, who is leading the offense for the No. 1 team and calling plays for the potential Heisman Trophy winner, but he won’t, and the reason couldn’t be more short-sighted. 

Now, Hartline is set to become the next head coach of USF, a day after Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein chose Kentucky, and Penn State still has no answer. 

Penn State isn’t just hiring a coach, it’s looking for a roster

Penn State built its 2025 roster to win a national championship. Any holes the team had at WR or linebacker were filled with veteran additions in the transfer portal. Nearly any underclassmen who were considering the NFL Draft, Penn State paid to keep them in school. Now, that roster is on the cusp of aging out, and with no 2026 recruiting class to speak of, the Nittany Lions will be hard-pressed to field a competitive team in 2026. 

Many of the best head coaches in the sport right now got their first jobs at a powerhouse program after cutting their teeth as a coordinator. Kirby Smart went straight from being Nick Saban’s defensive coordinator at Alabama to leading Georgia to championships. Dan Lanning was Smart’s DC in Athens before taking over Oregon, Marcus Freeman was Brian Kelly’s DC at Notre Dame, Lincoln Riley was Bob Stoops' OC at Oklahoma, Ryan Day was Urban Meyer’s OC at Ohio State, and Brent Venables was Dabo Swinney’s DC at Clemson. 

Additionally, there has never been a bigger gap between the operations at Power 4 programs compared to a G6 school. So, experience managing a massive NIL collective and all the machinations that go into building a roster like the one that Hartline has helped construct in Columbus is probably more applicable than Jon Sumrall’s tenure at Tulane, even though he was the head man. 

Yet, there’s one big drawback to hiring a coordinator, and it’s particularly impactful for a program in Penn State’s position with a roster that is about to be gutted by graduation. A coordinator can’t bring a roster with them, as a head coach can. That seems to be playing a big role in Penn State’s coaching search, and while it may set up the Nittany Lions to be the most competitive they can be in 2026, focusing so much on one season when hiring a head coach is a huge mistake, one that could be spurred on by the pressure Kraft feels to be immediately vindicated for firing Franklin just six games into the season. 

Taking a swing on Hartline may not give Penn State the best chance to win eight games in 2026, but it will give the Nittany Lions the best chance to win a national championship in 2028. But if Penn State has another rough season in 2026, Kraft may not be around to see 2028, and that’s the conundrum.