We head into week two of what’s expected to be around a two month coaching search, and with last week’s post having over 1,500 comments, it felt right to start a new post. I have some news and notes on new and old candidates below, but please use this post as your “forum” for the coaching search discussion this week.
Before we get to those news and notes, I do want to point out some important timelines for Penn State (and other schools, like Florida) when it comes to naming their next head coach because
this is the first time that “elite” jobs have opened up while having the 12-team playoff. Back when it was just four teams and usually filled with some combination of Ryan Day, Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, Dabo Swinney, and Jim Harbaugh, those guys weren’t involved in any college-to-college coaching searches so it was business as usual. Seasons would wrap up, and coaching hires would be made in the following days late in November/early December. Ideally for schools, that would still be the timeline considering Early National Signing Day is December 4 and the transfer portal opens January 2 and only runs through the 16th. Most programs would like to have to their head coach in by December 4 to salvage what they can of the recruiting class, and then really use the month of December to re-recruit the players (that they want) on the current roster to stick around.
Bad news with the timeline: the CFP first round is December 19-20 and the quarterfinals are December 31-January 1. If Penn State wants a coach who makes the CFP, how is it plausible for them to wait it out? Like if a coach makes the quarterfinals or beyond, there’s just no way a school can wait for them. And even from the coach’s perspective — why would you leave a place you made the quarterfinal with to go to a program where you IMMEDIATELY have to deal with the portal? There’s one thing to coming in here the first week of December and having a month to prepare with the roster chaos, but *literally* the first day?
Is it ever so slightly more possible to hire a coach who loses after the first round? Sure, maybe? But also, not really! I just don’t see how the timeline would set up right, specifically given that there’s no guarantees a coach loses in the first round. So come hell or high water, Penn State needs a coach in place by early December and I think that will be important to remember as we keep track of potential candidates.
Mike Elko
The Texas A&M head coach was a name I didn’t mention in the last version mostly because I didn’t think he was even somewhat realistic. First and foremost, A&M is a very good job. In my view, it’s one of the 18 jobs that have historically (no offense, Indiana) and currently (no offense, Nebraska) separated itself from the pack of having everything you need where the expectation is rightly a title. Those 18 jobs (in no order) being: Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Oregon, USC, Texas, Oklahoma, Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Florida, Florida State, Miami, Clemson, and Notre Dame.
There’s only been a few occurrences of a coach leaving one of those jobs for another, and the reason is usually because the coach feels he’s hit his peak at the school after multiple seasons (Jimbo, Brian Kelly, Lincoln Riley, etc.). Elko doesn’t fit that at all. He’s only in his second season with the Aggies and has them undefeated and ranked No. 3 in the country. Even if the Aggies falter a bit down the stretch, he has the program headed in the right direction. Why would he want to restart at Penn State? So I still maintain this is unrealistic, but Bruce Feldman had a hit on on Big Noon Kickoff where he mentioned two names and two names only: Matt Rhule and Mike Elko.
Feldman could just be doing Mike Elko’s agent (Jimmy Sexton) a favor by tying him to the Penn State gig so A&M is aware it’s time for a payday (Elko’s salary is just $7 million). But as Feldman said in the video, Elko does have ties to the area being a New Jersey native and having played football at Penn. I still think this is unrealistic, but perhaps there’s a chance A&M goes 9-3, misses the CFP, and Elko heads back north? Fingers crossed because I’d love Elko.
Jeff Brohm
In the comments of one of Cari’s mailbags many weeks ago, I mentioned I really liked Jeff Brohm as a potential replacement for James Franklin. Here’s what I said just after the Oregon game:
Perhaps it’s because he’s at his alma mater, but I’m surprised Brohm doesn’t get talked about for some of the bigger jobs. Offensive-minded, very good QB coach, recruits pretty well, and has a 4-5 record against the top 10. He only went 36-34 in six seasons at Purdue, but that’s actually impressive when you consider they were 22-52 the six seasons before he got there and are now 7-21 since he left. Yes, it was the B1G West, but them winning that division his last year there is a miracle.
Well, make that’s now 5-5 against top 10 opponents and an astounding 4-2 when they are in the top five because Brohm and Louisville went into Miami and upended the No. 2 Hurricanes.
I continue to believe Brohm will be a tough get from his alma mater and hometown, and he’s proven to be a loyal guy in the past. I mean for the love of Pete, he stayed at Purdue — PURDUE! — for six seasons. But his salary at Louisville is only $6 million in 2026, a figure that Penn State could very well double if they *really* wanted Brohm. We’ll see where this one goes.
Eli Drinkwitz
I wanted to make a stronger callout of Drinkwitz because although I think he looks like a dork and I kind of find him annoying, he checks a ton of boxes for what Penn State should be looking for: fun offensive system, strong QB play, solid defenses, has embraced the portal, and has really taken Mizzou’s recruiting to the next level.
He’ll be in the mix for the Florida job and really any other SEC job that opens up, which is worrisome because he’s originally from Arkansas and the majority of his coaching career has been in the south. But I think Drink will be a name you hear pop up for Penn State more and more.
Matt Rhule
Man, I tried my best with Matt Rhule. I really did. I thought, “Hey, he’s a good coach. If he can get Nebraska to 10-2, I can talk myself into him.” I even made a cute little graphic to have some fun over the next couple weeks.
BUDDY COULDN’T EVEN GET TO THE FIRST FLAG! COME ON, MATT!
Is Rhule completely done? No, but he should be and I think he will be. This Cornhuskers team feels like 2014-2015 Penn State: their wins are unimpressive, their losses painful. They have Northwestern next week which should be a win and get Rhule to 6-2, but then you are looking at a final stretch of USC, @UCLA, @Penn State, and Iowa. I would be shocked if they don’t go — at best — 2-2, leaving Rhule 8-4 in year three at Nebraska. I’m sorry, Matt, but that ain’t good enough to get the Penn State job.
Manny Diaz
I didn’t mention Manny Diaz on the latest version because if guys like Matt Rhule and Matt Campbell are the floor, I view Diaz as the basement. I know that sounds harsh, but in my opinion, there’s just nothing overly impressive about Diaz’s resume. He was 6-7, 8-3, and 7-5 at Miami, and is now 9-4 and 4-3 through two seasons at Duke, while boasting an 0-7 record against Top 15 teams (just lot to Georgia Tech at home to add to that) through 4.5 seasons as a head coach.
Is Diaz a bad coach? No, not at all. I think he’s fine and completely competent, but that’s about it and part of the problem. Like James Franklin, I think you know what you’ll get from Diaz. But instead of 10-2 and losing the big games, it’s more of the 8-4/9-3 variety and losing the big games.
Curt Cignetti
The first name I mentioned last week is unofficially officially off the list as Curt Cignetti signed an eight year, $93 million extension to stay with the Indiana Hoosiers. His buyout if he wanted to leave only raised from $10 million to $15 million, but I think it’s clear he’s gonna stick around Bloomington while the good times are rolling.
