New Coaching Staff

[doctornick]

So, it seems like Campbell is slow to announce his coaching staff. I wonder if that is intentionally to see how many coaches get hired away (potentially by VA Tech) to avoid having to have PSU pay any contracted salary? Or course that would matter more for Knowles or Kotelnicki and it doesn't seem like either is heading out so they will probably have to be let go.

Edit: maybe Kotelnicki goes back to Kansas as it sounds like they were disappointed with their current OC

 

[Nittering Nabob]

Once James gets hold of the play sheet on the sidelines you know it’s over for the OC and offense

The laminated one tethered to the belt loop on his khakis? He periodically holds it up to look like he knows what's printed on it.

 

[BobPSU92]

Danny O’brien will follow BGJ to VT

We’re screwed.

 

[Blair10]

So, it seems like Campbell is slow to announce his coaching staff. I wonder if that is intentionally to see how many coaches get hired away (potentially by VA Tech) to avoid having to have PSU pay any contracted salary? Or course that would matter more for Knowles or Kotelnicki and it doesn't seem like either is heading out so they will probably have to be let go.

Edit: maybe Kotelnicki goes back to Kansas as it sounds like they were disappointed with their current OC

I do not think Campbell has been slow to announce his coaching staff. The man just landed in State College 2 days ago. In addition, there Is still a bowl game remaining with the current staff still under contract. It would be a disastrous PR move to announce Kotelnicki’s replacement while Kotelnicki is still coaching under contract.

 

[Dbsteel]

I didn’t believe it until I just read Thamel’s post on X. James is really trying to re-create all of this in Blacksburg and do it all over again, probably to try to prove everybody wrong. O’brien ruined Allar. There are strong rumors out there that Hagans is going down there as well. Thank God Kraft had the stones to fire Franklin. I think he’s lost his mind. This is the definition of insanity.

It wasnt working at Penn State for Franklin, so let's bring the entire crew over and do it all over again.

 

[Phils rug]

The laminated one tethered to the belt loop on his khakis? He periodically holds it up to look like he knows what's printed on it.

It just has "Explosive Plays" printed all over it. No actual plays, just those two words.

 

[MacNit]

Just like ohio state has more resources yet you expected psu to beat them

Not every year…but more than once a decade.

 

[NittanyLionRoar]

Are the VT announced coaches, Ty Howle, Danny O’Brien, and whoever else might follow, leaving immediately or are they still here for the bowl game?

 

[Catch1lion]

We’re screwed.

VT new cheer, We are..... Gobble, Gobble

 

[13th Grade]

It just has "Explosive Plays" printed all over it. No actual plays, just those two words.

Obviously

 

[PSU87]

Danny O’brien will follow BGJ to VT

So Franklin is putting the band back together at a school with less resources than PSU.
Forgive me if I'm not petrified.

 

[PSU87]

Not every year…but more than once a decade.

The Franklin Fan Club is adept at moving the goal posts.
Beating OSU more than once a decade becomes winning the natty every year.

 

[KC-KS-Lion]

So, it seems like Campbell is slow to announce his coaching staff. I wonder if that is intentionally to see how many coaches get hired away (potentially by VA Tech) to avoid having to have PSU pay any contracted salary? Or course that would matter more for Knowles or Kotelnicki and it doesn't seem like either is heading out so they will probably have to be let go.

Edit: maybe Kotelnicki goes back to Kansas as it sounds like they were disappointed with their current OC

I think he's walking a tight rope between where the team is now-what's on their plate with the current players and staff and where he wants them to be-both of which will change to some degree. In the interim he has to be develop new relationships and respect existing ones, with the latter affecting the former. I think his foundation of toughness, discipline, and togetherness if given consistently will resonate with those given the option to stay, having the seal of approval with Terry Smith will help, and those with choices will do so, and like he mentioned in one of his interviews he will target players wanting to be here, and relatively speaking the here is pretty attractive, both Penn State and the Big Ten.

 

[PSUHarry]

Knowles needs to start job hunting.

Maybe. Keep in mind his 4-2-5 with 3 safeties is the same that Campbell likes to run. They may find some alignment. All comes down to whether we find the personnel to run it. Heacock the Iowa State DC is coming over but in an undetermined role at the moment. He could end up just an analyst as he is close to retirement.

 

[PSUHarry]

PSU had a bunch of younger (and probably quicker) LB's who never/rarely saw the field except for ST

Yeah but guys like Wylie were so lost when out there. Tatch looked solid.

 

[PSUHarry]

Noah Pauley - ISU WR coach is definitely in. He won wr coy in 2024, and he is a huge upgrade over Hagans.

No indication he’s coming.

 

[PSUHarry]

DC is not confirmed. ISU DC Heacock was heading to retirement soon and may be coming onboard at PSU as an analyst. It is not yet known if Knowles would be retained then either. It is not known if the ISU OC is coming over as an OC either. Other boards think Campbell might go with a new OC. We only know OL and WR for sure. Everything else is being worked out this week. Good news that Derek Hoodjer, ISU GM who is so good at identifying talent, will be retained by Campbell as the GM here at PSU.

Can you provide a link that says Pauly is coming? I may have missed that.

 

[PSUHarry]

Until the HC left and then suddenly WR’s were getting open. Lol.

but yes, we needed a huge upgrade there

True. They were running the same plays too. Just executed them better. Many of our open WRs were only with 2 WRs is routes off of play action.

 

[PSUHarry]

I keep harping on Franklin, so this will be the end of it. But I'm not worried about Franklin scooping our primary targets on the recruiting trail.

Franklin's recruiting has fallen off since the '22 class - ironically when NIL kicked in. The '26 class was set to be his worse at PSU since '15, which funny enough, is Tech's best in program history. I'll even say, I think some of those kids he scooped from PSU are having second thoughts after seeing Campbell/PSU's annual $30 million commitment to NIL. Same with Sieg and Brown at WVU. We can circle back with all these guys in coming years in the transfer portal.

I'd like to keep Howle - he's been a great developer and recruiter, not to mention he's an alum. But if Franklin is willing to risk a first time play caller as his OC just for a TE recruiting bump in VA, I need no more reason to believe Franklin is falling into one of his regular traps. Not even mentioning the bizarre hire of Pry as DC - I still have nightmares of his fourth quarter meltdowns, the safety blitz from 30 yards away, making no-name QBs look like heisman candidates, mismanagement of positions, etc etc.

Franklin & V Tech will be more like Rutgers, Pitt, WVU, Cuse as far as competitors are concerned vs. OSU, ND, Michigan, Clemson. They just don't have the budget, resources, facilities, stadium, tradition. They'll grab a guy we like here and there, more than likely on the borderline 3*/4* that they'll be willing to "shell out for" that we wouldn't.

They do have budget. Comes down to what they do with it.

 

[PSUHarry]

Confirmed. I wonder if Olesh or Reynolds will follow him? Of the three, I want to keep Rapp.best all-round of the three. Lots of movig parts between now and Spring practice.

Olesh highly probable to Michigan.

 

[PSUHarry]

Losing Chuck Losey would be a hit to this program. PSU always developed players physically at a very high athletic level.

He helped skill kids get drafted but no secret our Oline got pushed around most years.

 

[PSUHarry]

We have yet to see Olesh. Tough to evaluate him. He was the #1 overall PA recruit in the 2025 class according to 24/7. Very high 4/ almost 5 star TE that Franklin flipped from his Michigan commitment last minute. I’d like to see what the kid has. I hope he sticks around.

He’s gonna go to Michigan.

 

[PSUHarry]

I do not think Campbell has been slow to announce his coaching staff. The man just landed in State College 2 days ago. In addition, there Is still a bowl game remaining with the current staff still under contract. It would be a disastrous PR move to announce Kotelnicki’s replacement while Kotelnicki is still coaching under contract.

Also he’s talking to the existing roster to see who may portal.

 

[Efejle]

The most important thing is Hagans is gone. That's absolutely #1 with a bullet

 

[Itraindogs]

I think we should probably understand that recruiting is fluid. Just because a coach shows up in a PSU shirt doesn’t mean the kid is automatically going to go there over VT. As we have seen, Franklin builds relationships with the families, much like Paterno did. The kids stay loyal to him, as we have experienced recently. He will be a factor in recruiting in the DMV. As for the comment on him not being able to get the elite blue chip guys in PA, I’m not really sure what you are referring to? Barkley, Sanders, Parsons, Carter, Olesh, J’Ven Williams, Singleton, Menet, and a few others were considered “elite” recruits out of PA and they, along with some other PA guys, were the backbone of PSU for the last 10 years. Everybody bitched when he lost out on Fleming and Rucci. How did that turn out? PA does not have the depth in talent it used to have. C’mon man. I get it. It’s beat the dead horse here day after day. You hate Franklin. Got it. But if coaches underestimate him with recruiting, he will get his fair share of big recruits at VT. They have invested a lot more into their athletics department too. He’s going to be a challenge to recruit against.

I do not hate Franklin, I think he did a good job, but the vast majority of names you list are pre-NIL and in the last two cycles we have seen Notre Dame, Oregon and Clemson come in and pluck top end talent that traditionally would have gone to PSU. There is no escaping the fact that Franklin's compensation strategy was putting the program at a disadvantage and classes were getting weaker. I am not saying they were bad, by any stretch, but there was a slow erosion. James was stubborn to a fault. If he continues in the way he had at PSU at VTech he will bring in good players, but not great players, and over time they will run into similar problems as we had at PSU.

 

[Itraindogs]

Exactly.

I do not disagree entirely, but three things go against James. 1. He is obstinate in his position on compensation (for better or worse) and this has led to top end talent going elsewhere. 2. His OC picks have been poor. This has led to sub-par QB play (with initially good/great talent that degraded) and poor WR play. Unlike some, I cannot believe how every OC that comes to PSU all of a sudden unlearns how to call an offense.. 3. He is also a control freak. In the current football landscape NIL and portal management are essential to the success of the program and Franklin does not appear to be particularly adept in these areas. I think this will materialize at VT as well. He needs to hire a GM and restrict himself to coaching the roster he is provided with and leave the money to someone else.

 

[PSUFTG]

The most important thing is Hagans is gone. That's absolutely #1 with a bullet

Hagans leaving - assuming that happens - may very well be a possibility for significant upgrade.

That said:
#1 item wrt coaching staff, IMO, HAS TO be having an actual QB coach on staff.
Lack of one, IMO, absolutely killed Allar's potential for development. Not all young QBs are in as much of a need for coaching as Allar was, but that position does need a QB developer desperately.

 

[Itraindogs]

Maybe. Keep in mind his 4-2-5 with 3 safeties is the same that Campbell likes to run. They may find some alignment. All comes down to whether we find the personnel to run it. Heacock the Iowa State DC is coming over but in an undetermined role at the moment. He could end up just an analyst as he is close to retirement.

I agree. Knowles needs the right pieces to play the defense he excels at. He needs at least two high level DTs that can hold the point of attack and two or three high level LBs. If he has these the defense will markedly improve

 

[Connorpozlee]

The most important thing is Hagans is gone. That's absolutely #1 with a bullet

If he’s 1A, I’d have Danny O’Brien as 1B.

Edit: I see Barry said the same as me. The fact that Allar looked markedly worse this year as a senior is pretty damning on his coaching.

 

[psuno1]

I agree. Knowles needs the right pieces to play the defense he excels at. He needs at least two high level DTs that can hold the point of attack and two or three high level LBs. If he has these the defense will markedly improve

That is why PSU should have went all out to get Bear Alexander in the portal- that ended up at Oregon. Pretty sure PSU beats Oregon with him.

 

[KC-KS-Lion]

That is why PSU should have went all out to get Bear Alexander in the portal- that ended up at Oregon. Pretty sure PSU beat Oregon with him.

There is strategy with execution and strategy without-also known as empty words. I think Franklin spouted a bunch of empty words, especially in his post-game conferences after losses. It was not too surprising how the general attitude and energy of the team improved under Terry Smith. I'm curious as to how Coach Campbell will respond in each situation-will he appear clueless or surprised-the optics weren't very good with Franklin. I can't speak for what the players were seeing or interpreting, but it wasn't good from a fan who's seen both better and worse.

 

[Bwifan]

Sounds like Drayton is being courted by South Carolina to be their RB coach as well.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

GM on board . Never heard of him , but saw that some pretty good programs wanted him .

sounds like the complete opposite of Franklin’s roster management.....everyone year we had room deficiencies do to poor recruiting balance.

 

[LB99]

I do not hate Franklin, I think he did a good job, but the vast majority of names you list are pre-NIL and in the last two cycles we have seen Notre Dame, Oregon and Clemson come in and pluck top end talent that traditionally would have gone to PSU. There is no escaping the fact that Franklin's compensation strategy was putting the program at a disadvantage and classes were getting weaker. I am not saying they were bad, by any stretch, but there was a slow erosion. James was stubborn to a fault. If he continues in the way he had at PSU at VTech he will bring in good players, but not great players, and over time they will run into similar problems as we had at PSU.

I agree to a certain extent. You do not need “great” players to succeed at VT. If he recruits at the same rate he did at PSU, VT will be in the mix for the ACC annually.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

Well the "Deluca had to play" kind of happened after Rojas was hurt but ok.

The problem began when Franklin de-emphised the LB room in favor of DB.....

 

[Itraindogs]

I agree to a certain extent. You do not need “great” players to succeed at VT. If he recruits at the same rate he did at PSU, VT will be in the mix for the ACC annually.

It surely will be easier than the B10 but if he cannot figure out how to run a proper offense with an identity (or minimally hire someone who can do so and he gets out of the way) the same issues will crop up: QB and WR talent will degrade and we all saw how this worked out. Following the inevitable coaching "bump" he will receive we will see what he does with his personnel. Will he continue to emphasize seniority over talent? Will he refuse to compensate 4* players at the level other schools do? If the answers are yes to the two questions the same problems will reemerge. There are many unanswered questions that remain to be seen. The variable is James. The bottom line is that James' squads won largely because of a higher blue chip ratio compared to other schools; but once the talent advantage eroded things went south. This is not to say that you should win with lesser talent; but it never appeared that they had football solutions to football problems (kind of what we saw with Terry),

I am not a Franklin hater. I think he did a very good job and represented the university well; having said that identifying his weaknesses does not mean one hates him. I hope he does well.

 

[KC-KS-Lion]

Sounds like Drayton is being courted by South Carolina to be their RB coach as well.

I'm not sure how much he influenced RB recruitment, but that was one position, we were deep, I'd say to the third string.

 

[LB99]

I'm not sure how much he influenced RB recruitment, but that was one position, we were deep, I'd say to the third string.

Agree and I’m looking forward to seeing some of that deep talent. I hope they all stick around. Their time is here.

 

[TheWizardofCamelot]

Drayton is a guy I'd try and keep. Especially given more turnover and the impact it could have on Kemon Spell. He's already kept us out of his top 5, but I'd bet Drayton, Terry, and Campbell could get him interested again. Especially with Campbell's development of NFL RBs.

SC wants Traut too, which is interesting - Beamer will likely get fired next season so these guys will be looking for jobs again in a year.

 

[Bwifan]

Drayton is a guy I'd try and keep. Especially given more turnover and the impact it could have on Kemon Spell. He's already kept us out of his top 5, but I'd bet Drayton, Terry, and Campbell could get him interested again. Especially with Campbell's development of NFL RBs.

SC wants Traut too, which is interesting - Beamer will likely get fired next season so these guys will be looking for jobs again in a year.

Agree I would like to keep Drayton. He wasn't here long enough to have a large impact on recruiting. If he stays hopefully has the relationship with Spell and could convince him to stay with PSU.