Iowa State defensive coordinator Jon Heacock will not join Penn State and will retire from coaching after 43 years, he announced on X on Tuesday.

On3’s Pete Nakos reported in early December that Heacock was set to join the Nittany Lions staff and possibly be their next defensive coordinator. This news came just days after Matt Campbell was named the head coach in Happy Valley. Heacock and Campbell worked together for 10 years at Iowa State.

The 65-year-old has been coaching for over 40 years, including stops as defensive coordinator at Indiana and Kent State. He also spent nine seasons as the head coach of Youngstown State, a role he later resigned from.

Penn State’s defensive coordinator role is still up for grabs after Jim Knowles was not retained by Campbell and left for Tennessee. Knowles became the highest-paid college coordinator before the 2025 season after moving to Happy Valley from Ohio State, but left after just one season.

247Sports’ Matt Zenitz reports that former Penn State defensive back and current USC defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn could be a name to watch for the opening. Lynn has greatly improved the Trojans’ defense in two seasons, from 121st nationally in scoring defense in 2023 to allowing 12 fewer points per game in 2025.