After a 38-14 loss to Ohio State, the ninth-straight at the hands of the Buckeyes, Penn State is still unbeaten in Big Ten play at 0-5 and 3-5 overall. The Nittany Lions haven’t gotten an interim head coach bump that many others across the country have this season, so it’s safe to assume that Terry Smith won’t hold onto the head job beyond this season. You certainly don’t fire James Franklin unless you’re intent on big-game hunting for his replacement.
Yet, some of those potential big-name options have dried up since athletic director Pat Kraft made the bold decision to move on from Franklin after Week 7. Curt Cignetti signed a long-term deal to stay at Indiana, and Matt Rhule, who was presumed to be No. 1 on Kraft’s wishlist, re-upped with Nebraska for a healthy pay raise.
The coaching search is taking shape, and with those two options off the table, it may not be the shape that Penn State was hoping for. Still, let’s take a look at the program’s top potential replacement and power rank them after their Week 10 performance.
Off the board with extensions:
- Curt Cignetti, Indiana
- Matt Rhule, Nebraska
Not likely to leave:
- Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame
- Mike Elko, Texas A&M
Penn State head coach candidate power rankings:
Jeff Brohm is at his alma mater, but is he a Louisville lifer? I imagine a payday and the prospect of winning a national championship at Penn State could convince him to leave. A few weeks removed from another win over a top-five opponent, downing Miami, Brohm handled business against Virginia Tech, leaning on his team’s elite run game in the second half at Lane Stadium.
Brohm is the best big-game coach on this list. The man led Purdue to a Big Ten Championship Game. As long as his team wins, he’ll likely land at the top of these weekly rankings.
Brian Hartline is a bit of an under-the-radar candidate, but he made quite the case for the job on Saturday against the Nittany Lions. The offensive coordinator and longtime wide receiver coach of the Buckeyes painted a masterpiece at the Horseshoe, with Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, two elite wide receivers that he recruited and developed, combining for 247 yards and three touchdowns while his redshirt freshman quarterback completed 20 of his 23 throws for 316 yards and four scores.
He’s inexperienced, but Kirby Smart and Dan Lanning were first-time head coaches when they took over Georgia and Oregon, respectively. Maybe Hartline is the next great first-time head coach.
Missouri was on a bye after suffering its second loss of the season last week, and losing Beau Pribula for the year with an ankle injury. He’s had more than enough success at a program that is an SEC afterthought to be deserving of a top-three spot in Penn State’s coaching search.
If Drinkwitz finds a way to keep Missouri from completely falling off with true freshman Matt Zollers at QB the rest of the way, then Penn State should push even harder to keep him away from LSU and Florida.
Penn State hired James Franklin from Vanderbilt, and though it didn’t land the program a national title, you can’t say it didn’t work. Like Brohm, Lea is at his alma mater and may not be motivated to leave, but the way he built the Commodores into a CFP contender should make him a top candidate for every open job.
In Week 10, however, Lea suffered his team’s second loss of the year, looking completely outclassed by Texas for most of the game. Offensively, you saw the limitations of offensive coordinator Tim Beck’s scheme when it faced elite athletes in the front seven. Maybe Lea and his staff can start recruiting like a true title contender, but until they can match athletes with elite programs, they’ll struggle against the SEC’s big spenders.
Beating Clemson doesn’t nearly mean what it used to, but Manny Diaz accomplished that task on Saturday to get to 5-3 at Duke. A defensive-minded coach and Penn State’s former defensive coordinator, Diaz has proven that he’s not afraid of a shootout, employing a fast-paced, wide-open offensive attack that would be fun in Happy Valley.
Matt Campbell is a preeminent program-builder. The type of coach who has consistently done more with less for so long that it’d be great to see him have more. However, the Cyclones, after suffering injuries in the defensive secondary, have fallen apart, losing four straight.
You shouldn’t necessarily hire a head coach based on their most recent season, but Campbell is trending in the wrong direction.