Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft is getting a lot of heat for how this coaching search is turning out, and you can add On3’s Josh Pate to the list of critics.
Pate ripped Penn State’s firing of James Franklin the night it happened, and 51 days later, the program still does not have a head coach.
A tweet Pate Tuesday sent suggested the reason for this is that Penn State aimed too high.
Indeed, some of the school’s top reported targets: Texas A&M’s Mike Elko, Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer and Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman— all seemed to be long shots at best.
For Pate, there’s one name that didn’t get a lot of buzz in the search that should have.
WHAT PATE WROTE
“Penn State should have targeted Matt Campbell weeks ago & instead opted to chase unicorns.”
“What a disaster.”
Pate continued in a separate post.
“Iowa State football has existed 134 years…Campbell has them in the midst of the best 3-year run in program history,” he writes.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“His DNA blends perfectly with what PSU needs. How are you this blind?”
Indeed, Campbell has taken Iowa State football to new heights. Last season, the Cyclones went 11-3 for the most wins in program history. This year, the program finished the regular season 8-4.
Campbell has been at Iowa State for 10 seasons, and at just 46, one could argue he hasn’t even reached his coaching prime yet.
RUNNING OUT OF OPTIONS
Pat Kraft Penn St. Volleyball September 18, 2024 David Hague/NSN
It’s hard to argue that Penn State and Kraft aren’t running out of options at the moment. Most recently, Kalani Sitake, who briefly was the favorite for the job, ended up deciding to stay at BYU. Others, such as Mike Elko and Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz, signed extensions with their respective schools.
So where does Penn State go from here? One option is Louisville’s Jeff Brohm, who still hasn’t signed an extension. Another is Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, who people have been talking about from the beginning as a possible fit.
The Penn State coaching search is ongoing. Stayed tuned to Nittany Sports Now for updates.
Jim Mannion
December 2, 2025 at 10:55 pm
You give AD Kraft too much credit. If you have been paying attention to how the PSU administration works in matters dealing with the coach of the football team, then you know the trustees own ever single decision and Kraft is but a lacky. He doesn’t scratch his posterior without approval from the cabal running the university. Not that he’s that bright, but only the Trustees could screw the football program into the ground thinking they were keeping the legend of Joe from resurfacing.
Gregory Para
December 2, 2025 at 11:28 pm
Josh Pate is an insider because he is on tv some? These same insiders were saying Franklin can’t win big game and now he’s a great coach. Penn State has been a top 10-15 program for 10 years. So we should just be happy to never have a chance to win? Granted some of the coaches were never going to leave their schools. Matt Campbell is Franklin light. Pate must get paid to promote him.