By Anne EricksonShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberOn Monday, Dec. 1, the Penn State Nittany Lions continued their search for the football program's next head coach, amid more openings being filled in the college football landscape.
Major college football programs like LSU, Ole Miss, Auburn and Florida all nailed down their new head coaches this past weekend. But Penn State is still searching for a replacement for James Franklin, who was let go from the program early in the 2025 season. Franklin was fired from the program after a 3-3 start to a season, which eventually closed out last weekend at 6-6 after a 40-36 win over Rutgers.
On Monday, however, a top head-coaching candidate emerged in the search to find Penn State's new leader. According to a report from Football Scoop, one frontrunner has "engaged in more and more conversations the past 10 days as the Nittany Lions' search has wound a circuitous route."
...The coach in discussion is BYU head coach Kalani Sitake. In a piece out on Monday, Football Scoop reports that "a source deeply connected to the Penn State search and with ties at all level of the sport" says the talks between the school and Sitake are "very real."
"Anyone who understands football can turn on the tape and see tremendous schematics in all three phases of the game and players who play with great discipline," the source added. "Like any step up, the question is will he be able to assemble a staff that can recruit to the Northeast."
They continued, "But, as we all know, the bigger the rev-share (revenue-sharing dollars) and NIL, that mitigates the risk to some degree."
There's also the idea that Sitake is also using the talks as leverage for his BYU contract. Football Scoop reports that his salary at BYU has "lagged drastically behind his contemporaries."
More college football: Penn State Coaching Search Faces New Concern After Latest Hires
But their sources insist that the talks are "for real" and going strong.
He's not the only candidate, of course. CBS Sports and Lions247 name Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key as a favorite.
Tyler Donohue of Lions247 notes, "Key is a beloved figure for the program, and you'll find few coaches across the country with deeper roots on their current campus."
More college football: Top Penn State Candidate Eliminated From Coaching Search: Report
He adds, "With all that said, he ranks outside of the Top 50 nationally in 2025 salaries, so Georgia Tech likely must make a major jump in investment if it aims to beat out some circling sharks during this coaching carousel."
Request Reprint & LicensingSubmit CorrectionView Editorial & AI Guidelines
Add Newsweek as a preferred source on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search.Recommended For You
NCAABill Belichick, North Carolina Hit With Brutal News After NC State Defeat3 min read
NCAA$37 Million SEC Coach Fired After 41-0 Loss: Report2 min read
NCAAJimbo Fisher Could Replace Auburn’s New Coach at USF3 min read
NCAAUrban Meyer Reacts to Jon Sumrall Being Named Florida’s New Head Coach3 min read
NCAALane Kiffin’s First Game as LSU Head Coach Revealed3 min read
NCAA4-Star LSU WR Enters Transfer Portal Immediately After Lane Kiffin Hire2 min readRelated Podcasts
Top Stories
NewsWhite House Reveals New Details on Donald Trump’s MRI5 min read
NewsUncommon Knowledge: Trump Closes Venezuelan Airspace, but Not NATO Airspace5 min read
NewsWest Virginia Governor Gives Update on Guardsman Injured in DC Shooting3 min read
U.S.Justice Sonia Sotomayor Warns of ‘Two Extremes’ in Supreme Court Case4 min read
WorldRepublicans Demand Probe into Pete Hegseth’s Boat Strikes5 min read
Live BlogBrian Walshe’s Murder Trial: Suspect Offers First Explanation For Wife’s Death—Live Updates2 min readTrending
FloridaAmazon Driver Sees Food Left for Stray Cats—Ring Cam Captures What He Does3 min read
NWSWinter Storm Warning as 8 Inches of Snow to Hit North and Midwest3 min read
WeatherWinter Storm Warning As 13 Inches of Snow To Strike: ‘Extreme Caution’3 min read
Delta AirlineDelta Air Lines Plane Slides Off Runway During Winter Storm1 min read
Donald TrumpMap Shows Donald Trump’s Approval Rating in Each State After 10 Months4 min readOpinion
OpinionForeign Energy Companies Have No Home in Our Forests | Opinion4 min read
OpinionThe Hemp Ban Shows America Still Works | Opinion4 min read
OpinionConventional Wisdom: The Somali Minnesota Welfare Fraud Edition4 min read
OpinionRedefining Professional Degrees Will Hurt Everyday Americans | Opinion5 min read
OpinionAI Is Coming for Our Most Intimate Communications. Congress Must Act | Opinion5 min read
