Rest easy, Nittany Nation. I know the men who constitute our locker room, the men who go to war on Saturdays in the fall, the men who sweat and bleed for this program year round. Our football program is in good hands, no matter who the coach is. It always has been. It always will be.
It looks like Penn State has established its top two choices to replace Bill O'Brien. Miami head coach Al Golden and Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin have both reportedly been in talks with the university and are now the favorites to become Penn State's next head football coach.
With Bill O’Brien making his exit just two weeks before a number of recruits are expected to be enrolling at Penn State for the spring semester, interim head coach Larry Johnson has a lot on his plate at the moment. Johnson spoke to the media on Friday for the first time since taking over the reigns and discussed what he’s doing to try and keep Penn State football on the right path.
I couldn't help but be compelled the first time I read through the story Tuesday. On the surface, it has significant shock value and information you won't find anywhere else. But then I read it again. And again. And now, three days later, I find myself reading it for the dozenth time and still fuming at an ill-conceived quote that went viral and irreparably damaged our collective identity once again and for no good reason.
While Bradley's tenure lasted a couple months, Johnson's could be over in a matter of days, but he's going to make the most of it while he can. Johnson will address the media today face-to-face for the first time as interim coach today at 1:30 p.m. over the phone and 2:00 p.m. at Lasch. In the meantime, Penn State put out this fantastic video featuring the interim coach discussing the next chapter of Penn State football.
With athletic director Dave Joyner speaking to the media on Thursday and announcing Bill O'Brien's departure, the search for the next Penn State football coach is officially underway. We already wrote about potential candidates to replace O'Brien, but it's time to take a more in-depth look at the résumés of these candidates. There could always be a dark horse that enters the picture and shakes things up, but for the time being, the following group is thought to be on Joyner and the search committee's short list.