The Penn State Nittany Lions fired James Franklin as their head football coach on Saturday, satisfying a fanbase that was chanting "Fire Franklin" during games and forcing the administration's hand in State College, PA.
In the aftermath, several SEC head coaches are being linked to the job. ESPN's Dan Orlovsky named the Texas A&M Aggies' Mike Elko, Ole Miss Rebels' Lane Kiffin, and Vanderbilt Commodores' Clark Lea, along with the Indiana Hoosiers' Curt Cignetti, as coaches the Nittany Lions should reach out to.
Elko just took the TAMU job and should have plenty of donor support indefinitely in the NIL era. Kiffin said he'd only ever take the Alabama Crimson Tide job to leave Ole Miss, meaning almost any opening this season is seemingly off the table. Those two are the longest of shots.
Lea is an interesting option, given the already existing Vanderbilt Commodores-to-Nittany Lions pipeline. Vanderbilt might not have the funds to match Penn State's offer if a bidding war begins for Lea this offseason.
Curt Cignetti may pass on Penn State job, stay at Indiana
Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde reports that Cignetti may be inclined to pass on PSU to stay at IU, should the Nittany Lions come calling with an offer this offseason.
“As for Penn State? The first call has to go to Curt Cignetti (5), whose 17–2 record at Indiana is on the short list of the greatest coaching jobs The Dash has ever seen. Cignetti and Indiana have been a great fit and are good for each other, but he has roots in the state of Pennsylvania and it would be hard not to listen when (not if) the Nittany Lions call,” Forde wrote.
“But Cig might also feel some loyalty to the program that finally gave him his power-conference shot at age 62. This much is sure: Phones are ringing among Indiana administrators and donors right now to circle the wagons around their savior.”
Cignetti is building something sustainable in Bloomington. Penn State has been fortunate to have two head coaches who lasted longer than a decade in the seat, but there's no guarantee they could be great without Franklin or Joe Paterno. Because truth be told, they've never been.