Penn State targeting Iowa State's Matt Campbell as next head coach

Penn State is targeting Iowa State‘s Matt Campbell to become the program’s next head coach, according to On3’s Pete Nakos, Chris Low and Brett McMurphy. Campbell has emerged as the Nittany Lions’ top target and the two are working to finalize a deal.

Campbell would be taking over for Terry Smith, who was seen as a candidate for the position. He held the interim head coach title for the rest of the season after James Franklin was fired.

Franklin was let go by Penn State after a 3-3 start to the year, one season after leading the Nittany Lions to a national semifinal in the College Football Playoff. He’s since taken the job at Virginia Tech.

For Campbell, he’s 107–70 overall as a head coach. He received his first gig as headman at Toledo from 2012-2015 where he was a the 2015 MAC Coach of the Year. Campbell led the Rockets to consecutive divisional titles in 2014 and 2015 before moving on to Iowa State.

He’s 72–55 overall since taking over at Iowa State. During his tenure with the Cyclones, Campbell has led Iowa State to bowl games in eight of the last nine seasons. The lone exception came in 2021 following an uncharacteristic 4-8 finish.

In 2024, Iowa State had its best season yet under Campbell. Leading the Cyclones to an 11-3 record, they came up just short of the College Football Playoff after losing to Arizona State in the Big 12 Championship game. They were ranked as high as No. 9 in the AP Poll last season.

This season didn’t pan out as expected, finishing the year with an 8-4 record including a 5-4 mark against the Big 12. However, the Cyclones ended the regular season this year having won each of its last three games.

If hired, Campbell will take over a Penn State team post-signing day that signed just two recruits this cycle. Campbell pieced together the No. 50 recruiting class in the country so far for 2026, and it wouldn’t be unheard of to see a handful of those players follow him to Happy Valley. Though, the NCAA transfer portal is an option to quickly bolster the talent on his roster early next month.

Penn State finished the 2025 season with a 6-6 record despite their struggles. They’re set to play in a bowl game later this month.