Some potential Penn State names asked about job. Here’s what they said
Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft said he’s not in a hurry to find James Franklin’s successor, a day after firing the coach who took the Nittany Lions to the College Football Playoff just last season.
Technically, Monday was Day 1 of the coaching search, and plenty of names have been tossed around. A few were asked about the job during their Monday weekly news conferences.
Here’s what they had to say:
Matt Rhule, Nebraska
Rhule, a Penn State linebacker from 1994-97, is in his third season as head coach at Nebraska with the Cornhuskers 5-1 this year. He has a proven track record as a program builder, as he led quick rebuilds at both Temple and Baylor. He also has a long friendship with Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft, who hired him at Temple.
‘(Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen) and I understand the steps we need to take to make us Big Ten champions and national champions,’ Rhule said. ‘… I’m not going to talk a lot about job openings when they come. Maybe it’s been awhile here, but this is what happens when you win. I dealt with it when we won at Temple and I dealt with it all the time at Baylor.
‘I’m not going to talk about those things ever, I’m not going to talk about my contract here, I’m going to talk about the team. I absolutely love it here. I want us to continue to take the steps needed for us to turn this thing into a beast. … I’m really happy here.’
Rhule started his response by explaining his love for Penn State and Kraft, however. Rhule also mentioned how important Franklin was for stabilizing the program in a time of disarray when he took the job in 2014.
‘I love Penn State,’ Rhule said. ‘I met my wife there. It’s my alma mater. Fan since I was born, think I probably had a Penn State shirt on when I was born. I love Pat Kraft…
‘Troy and I are in unbelievable relationship too,’ he said. ‘And Troy and I are in constant, constant, constant communication about this program and where we’re headed.’
Manny Diaz, Duke
Diaz worked on Franklin’s staff at Penn State for two seasons as defensive coordinator and LBs coach in 2022-23 before taking the Duke job. Diaz has a 13-6 record with the Blue Devils, leading the program to a 9-4 record in 2024.
‘I know how hard James worked. I know nobody cared more about getting Penn State back to the top of college football,’ Diaz said, per Anna Snyder of the Fayetteville Observer.
‘I’ve already been through it. Look, there’s three things you go through when you’re a coach. You’re in the honeymoon phase, you’re in the please don’t leave phase, and then the please leave now phase … College football is preparation and mindset. And so I think that’s the whole key. You have got to be present where you are. And the second you start thinking about what’s next, you’re about to get it.
‘It does say a lot about where we are in college football right now, that three weeks ago, that they could be No. 2 in the country … And this is going to happen more. I don’t know that we’re fully aware of how our sport is changing or rapidly changing. You can’t build these massive conferences. Like, we’re just going to lose games more. That’s what’s going to happen. … I think we’re in a strange place in this sport because if you can have a bad three weeks and it can go that quickly, it just lets everybody know we’re not where we used to be.’
Brent Key, Georgia Tech
Key is a Georgia Tech alum and has the Ramblin’ Wreck wreckin’ folks. Key has started his fourth season in Atlanta 6-0 and has the Yellow Jackets up to No. 12 in the US LBM Coaches Poll.
He’s a hot name in carousel speculation and was asked more broadly about coaching openings in general Monday:
‘All of that noise, quote, unquote noise, it comes with success,’ Key told 680 The Score in Atlanta. ‘Would you rather not have it and be 3-3? Not at all. It’s part of it. True competitors get motivated by that stuff.”
Fran Brown, Syracuse
Brown went 10-3 in his first season as Orange coach last year and was off to a 3-1 start following a win at Clemson. He became a hot name with openings popping up and USA TODAY’s Matt Hayes was singing his praises. Syracuse has lost two straight, but Brown still has plenty of admirers. His name has popped up on a few early Franklin replacement lists out there. He seemed less than enthused when asked about the job Monday.
‘I mean I’m working at Syracuse right now, so I don’t really need to talk about that,’ Brown said at his weekly news conference. ‘If this wasn’t where I wanted to be right at this moment, would I be standing here at this moment? Yeah, so I’m just focused on that. I’m focused on being here. I’m locked in on coaching the players that I have here. This is where I work at. I think that’s disrespectful to even bring that up and ask that. What’s the point of asking that?’
Curt Cignetti, Indiana
The Hoosiers coach has been a name atop many Penn State wish lists — however realistic that is. Cignetti is from Pittsburgh, attended West Virginia and cut his teeth coaching at Pitt. That’s pro-Pennsylvania, but not necessarily pro-State University of Pennsylvania.
He wasn’t asked about the Penn State job at his weekly news conference Monday. In just his second season in Bloomington, Cignetti already signed an improved contract after last season’s playoff run. He’s paid as one of the nation’s top coaches and has mastered the winning formula in the NIL and portal era.
When asked why he signed that contract before last offseason’s coaching carousel, Cignetti responded: “We’re the emerging superpower in college football. Why would I leave?”
Indiana is 6-0 and ranked No. 3 in the country after its 30-20 win at Oregon on Saturday.
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