Penn State football’s defensive line coach and run game coordinator, John Scott Jr., will be coaching a different Lions team next season.
Jon Sauber of the Centre Daily Times first reported that Scott is leaving Penn State for the NFL after three seasons.
Sources: Penn State DL coach John Scott Jr. is leaving for a job in the NFL.
More here:https://t.co/L7oKHvzfEt
— Jon Sauber (@JonSauber) February 27, 2023
Penn State defensive line coach John Scott Jr is departing for the NFL, specifically the Detroit Lions. sources have confirmed to @PennStateRivals. @JonSauber had it first.
— DylanCallaghanCroley (@Dylan_RivalsPRZ) February 27, 2023
Scott is the second coach to leave Penn State this offseason and the first one to do so willingly.
In January, Penn State fired wide receivers coach Taylor Stubblefield and replaced him with Marques Hagans, formerly of the Virginia, later that month.
In Scott’s last game at Penn State, the defense put up six sacks in its 35-21 Rose Bowl win over Utah, which was a solid feather in the cap.
Perhaps Scott’s biggest success story in his time at Penn State was Arnold Ebiketie. Ebiketie came to Penn State before the 2021 season after four years at Temple, and tore it up. He became one of the best defensive players in the Big Ten, finishing second in the conference in sacks (9.5) and tackles for loss (18), earning first-team All-Big Ten honors.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.At last year’s NFL Combine Press Conference in Indianapolis, Ebiketie credited Scott and Penn State’s coaching staff for his career year.
“(Defensive Line Coach John) Scott, (graduate assistant) Deion Barnes, those guys, they kind of helped me put together some of the pieces that I was missing into my game,” Ebiketie said. “And I think, once I got that, I kind of put everything together. That’s where the production came from.”
This past season, Scott helped defensive end Chop Robinson become one of Penn State’s best players almost right away. Robinson transferred from Maryland last spring and finished his first year at Penn State with 5.5 sacks, one sack behind LB Abdul Carter for the team lead. Robinson also had 10 tackles for loss and three quarterback hurries, becoming a unanimous honorable mention All-Big 10 selection. Robinson had 1.5 sacks in the Rose Bowl to end the year with a bang.
This will be Scott’s second NFL coaching stop. He previously worked with the New York Jets (2015-16), first as a defensive quality control coach and then as an assistant coach. It’s unclear yet what Scott’s position with the Lions will be.
Update (8:11 p.m.)—
**James Franklin has released a statement on Scott’s departure.
#WeAre pic.twitter.com/r0qhVE5a6h
— James Franklin (@coachjfranklin) February 28, 2023
