Penn State is expected to hire Jim Knowles as defensive coordinator on a three-year deal with an average of $3.1 million per year, a program source said.
Coach James Franklin has been trying to add the former Ohio State defensive coordinator to his staff since last week following the Buckeyes’ national championship win.
Knowles, who was reportedly interested in becoming Oklahoma’s defensive coordinator, was one of the most attractive coordinator candidates in this coaching cycle. Knowles is expected to sign a three-year contract with the Nittany Lions around an average of $3.1 million per year, per the program source.
Knowles fills the void on Penn State’s staff left by Tom Allen, who accepted the same position with Clemson earlier this month. Knowles would be one of the most significant hires of Franklin’s tenure. Hiring a coordinator from a national championship team can help elevate a Penn State defense that has consistently been one of the top units in the country. Pairing a Knowles defense with a Penn State offense that returns a strong nucleus of starters could be the kind of hire that helps get Franklin’s program over the hump and to a national championship game.
Knowles, who built top-5 defenses in the last two years at Ohio State, left his job with the Buckeyes leaving a hole there, but filling a massive void at Penn State. This decision by Knowles will drastically impact the college football landscape as Ohio State, Oklahoma and Notre Dame are searching for defensive coordinators.
Next season, Ohio State will host Penn State on Nov. 1.
How will this impact Ohio State?
Knowles spent the last three years righting the wrongs of Ohio State’s defense before him and helped shape it into the best defense in the country.
In the process, he became the most sought-after coordinator this offseason. He will be missed at Ohio State, but there’s not a great internal candidate. Larry Johnson will be a defensive line coach until he retires, and James Lauriniatis is an up-and-coming coach but it was just his first year at linebackers coach. Tim Walton is a terrific secondary coach and I don’t think Ohio State wants to move him or Matt Guerreri, who was previously a co-defensive coordinator at Indiana, from their positions.
Ohio State is going to have to make a move outside of the program to fill the void. There should be plenty of candidates lined up hoping to fill the void, because the Buckeyes will return the best safety in the country in Caleb Downs, a future NFL Draft pick at linebacker in Sonny Styles and a deep defensive back room. There’s some questions on the defensive line, but there’s a lot to like about the job.
Whoever Ohio State goes after, though, needs to be a coach who can find the balance between being conservative and aggressive, something Knowles took time to figure out at Ohio State. Knowles’ football IQ and creativity make him hard to replace, but that will be coach Ryan Day’s biggest job this offseason. He hit the jackpot with Chip Kelly last year, but this one is even more important. — Cameron Teague Robinson, Ohio State staff writer
Required reading
(Photo: Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)
