In January 2021, Penn State football announced the hiring of Mike Yurcich, a journeyman coach who landed in Happy Valley as the program’s newest offensive coordinator. Not even three calendar years later, he was dismissed after the Nittany Lions lost 24-15 against Michigan.

Yurcich, whose offense has yielded questionable results all season, also had a dismal showing when the team lost 20-12 at Ohio State last month. James Franklin dropped hints all season indicating his dissatisfaction with the offense, but nothing was as damning as what he said after Saturday’s loss.

“We have to do a better job of calling a game to allow a quarterback to get into rhythm — that’s critical,” Franklin said. “We’ve got to find easy completions for a quarterback to get in rhythm — that’s what everybody does.”

But just like Penn State’s 2023 season, Yurcich fell far short of expectations and hype.

When Yurcich arrived at Penn State, there was optimism that Franklin finally got it right at offensive coordinator, as the veteran found success at programs such as Texas, Ohio State, and Oklahoma State. His 6.34 yards per play and 13.63 yards per completion both ranked first among offensive coordinators since 2013.

Instead, Yurcich joins a lengthy list of Franklin’s former offensive coordinators that is growing alarmingly fast. In his 10 years at Penn State, he’s now had five offensive coordinators. When looking at that statistic, it’s awfully hard to put this on Yurcich. While Yurcich had his ups and downs, the common denominator throughout all of this has been the head coach.

Like failing to beat Michigan and Ohio State on a consistent basis, finding a long-term, successful offensive coordinator has proven to be elusive for Franklin. These two problems continue to plague an otherwise good head coach, and for whatever reason, he can’t seem to solve either one.

If Franklin could find a good offensive coordinator, who knows what could happen in those big games in future seasons? Without Yurcich, does Drew Allar, the five-star recruit he lured to Happy Valley, light up a banged-up Buckeye secondary, or do Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen chip away at the Wolverines’ defensive line, just as the Wolverines’ duo did to the defense that was supposed to be among the nation’s best?

Instead, Allar looked shaky in both outings. He completed 18-for-42 of pass attempts and 191 passing yards in Columbus, and then 10-for-22 and 70 against the Wolverines. Instead, Singleton and Allen haven’t been nearly as explosive as they were last season. Not to mention a wide receiver corps that has let Allar down countless times by dropping passes or being unable to separate from defensive backs. It’s sometimes hard to believe this same program had the likes of Jahan Dotson, Chris Godwin, and KJ Hamler just a few seasons ago.

The pieces aren’t falling into place, and steps are being taken backward instead of forward. Yurcich, like his offense in 2023, had high potential. Neither one fulfilled it.

It’s the Groundhog Day-esque reality that this program seems to be suspended in. Although tons of effort is involved, the movie is always the same, and this Penn State team hasn’t won any Oscars.

So, how does it get out?

Franklin needs to take a long and hard look at why he can’t find a reliable offensive coordinator. He’s the common denominator, so if not him, something about his operation needs to change significantly.

However, Franklin likely has a few seasons left of losing every big game on the schedule and hiring offensive coordinators whose tenures go up in flames before Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Pat Kraft and the Board of Trustees begin to seriously evaluate the program’s future under him. With the Big Ten expansion meaning tougher opponents on a more frequent basis, this next hire may be his last chance to get it right at offensive coordinator.