How Penn State’s coaching search took twists and turns before landing on Matt Campbell

Pat Kraft raised his arms in triumph as Matt Campbell walked down the steps of a private jet late Sunday afternoon. Campbell walked across the blue carpet laid down by the Nittany Lion mascot when the jet landed and gave Kraft a hug.

Campbell arrived in State College 56 days after James Franklin was fired as Penn State’s head coach — eight weeks of searching by Kraft with no search firm and no search committee. There was silence, a miscommunication, a near-miss and leaked audio from a private meeting that led to the AD coming under fire from fans before even making a hire.

Those eight weeks were complicated, with an uneven process that ultimately led Penn State to Campbell despite all of that turmoil.

There were moments where it seemed like everything would fall apart, and open questions about how long the AD would last in his position. There was frustration that other coaches were being hired around the country and Kraft had not made his move. That wasn’t all that surprising for those following closely — he and the athletic department put great effort into keeping the search quiet.

For most, that meant figuring out who Kraft wanted based on what he said on Oct. 13, the day after he fired Franklin.

“This person has to fit Penn State,” Kraft said in the press conference. “They need to represent the toughness, the blue-collar work ethic, and the class that defines this institution. We want someone who honors our tradition but isn’t afraid to evolve; someone who understand the weight of ‘we are’ and leads us forward with a vision of championships.”

In the end, the candidates Penn State pursued most aggressively matched that description. Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko pulled his name from consideration in mid-November, according to multiple sources, much to the surprise from those around college football. In the end, having an undefeated team made it too difficult to leave the situation he was in at the time. There was also interest in Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key, who ultimately signed an extension with the Yellow Jackets after fielding that interest from the Nittany Lions.

And then there was BYU head coach Kalani Sitake. He interviewed for the job in November and immediately moved into the top group, according to a source. There was mutual interest in making Sitake the next head coach at Penn State and the end of the search was drawing near in the last week of November. Sitake led the Cougars to an 11th win and a berth in the Big 12 title game — and had begun to put everything in place to becomes Penn State’s head coach.

Potential assistant coaches had been contacted to join him, according to multiple sources, and he had begun planning what his first Penn State roster would look like. BYU recruits were notified that Sitake intended on leaving and plans were made for who he could target from the Cougars’ current roster. Everything was rolling toward the BYU head coach leading his team in the Big 12 title game and the news coming out not long after that he would be leaving his alma mater.

But then the ship started leaking. News broke that Sitake was a target, and soon after that he was the focus of the search. That mobilized the BYU donors to get a deal done and within 24 hours from Dec. 1 to Dec. 2 Sitake went from planning to be at Penn State to signing an extension at BYU.

It’s an open question how interested he was in the first place. He’s well-regarded as an authentic coach who is loyal and honest to a fault, and he even put the time and effort in to create a plan for Penn State. But some at Penn State wonder if he was ever going to leave BYU, and if he just needed the leverage to get what he wanted from the university. The truth of what happened or what his motives were may never come out, but Penn State had to move on quickly.

So the Nittany Lions pivoted. First came Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm. But like Sitake, he’s an alum of his current school, and they were not going to be played again. Then there was former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll. But the decision was made that his future was in the NFL, most likely as a coordinator next season. So a quick reset came. Interviews with Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and then-Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell followed. Campbell had been a popular name on the outside for the position, but he was not part of the process until it was nearly over.

That’s because, as Matt Fortuna of The Inside Zone originally reported, Penn State had reached out to who it thought was the appropriate contact for Campbell. But they did not reach out to the correct person, and the Nittany Lions’ interest in him didn’t reach the Iowa State head coach.

But that didn’t matter by Day 52 of the search when the first interview was done. Penn State decided quickly that Campbell was the guy and it got to work, flying to Ames, Iowa, to meet him Thursday night.

Confidence was high that the deal would get done — but it previously was with Sitake too. And while the reset was happening and interviews were going on, pressure was building from a section of donors who wanted interim head coach Terry Smith — who was likely to be retained by Sitake had he been hired — to be promoted. Those donors were pushing to wrest control of the search from Kraft by any means necessary in order to get Smith hired. And players — current and former — were beginning to push for Smith on social media. Murmurs of discontent with Kraft began to spread, and audio from a private meeting with Penn State’s leadership council was leaked late Thursday night as Penn State’s contingent flew back from its meeting with Campbell.

By Friday morning reaction to the audio was rampant — but it was not negative. Many appreciated Kraft’s authenticity in the meeting — a meeting that, according to a source, was requested by the players.

And so the focus shifted back to Campbell. By Friday afternoon news that he was the top target and the sides were negotiating had leaked, but a deal was not quite done. Terms still needed to be agreed to and after what happened with Sitake, there was no guarantee that it would get done.

This is where, if the last day of the search was like the previous 53, there would be another twist or turn. But there wasn’t. Friday night word broke that the deal was agreed to and Campbell would become the 17th head coach in Penn State football history.

And on Sunday evening he stepped off that private jet wearing a Penn State jacket — giving Kraft a hug as the AD smiled.

This story was originally published December 8, 2025 at 10:03 AM.

Jon Sauber

Centre Daily Times

(814) 231-6461

Jon Sauber covers Penn State football and men’s basketball for the Centre Daily Times. He earned his B.A. in digital and print journalism from Penn State and his M.A. in sports journalism from IUPUI. His previous stops include jobs at The Indianapolis Star, the NCAA, and Rivals.