After firing James Franklin as head coach post three consecutive losses against Oregon, UCLA, and Northwestern, Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft is searching for his next head coach and if a prediction report is to be believed, their next coach could again be from Vanderbilt and not the widely rumored SEC’s Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin.
In 2014, Penn State hired Franklin, who was working with Vanderbilt as head coach. According to CBS Sports analyst Cooper Petagna, Clark Lea could be an option to become Penn State’s head coach.
“Lea has shown a rare ability to diagnose shortcomings within his program and address them head-on,” the analyst wrote. “His willingness to adapt and evolve — in an era defined by roster turnover, portal volatility, and razor-thin margins — represents exactly the traits required to build and sustain success in modern college football.”
Lea is currently in the middle of another successful season with the Commodores. In his fourth year at the helm there, he gave the SEC program its first bowl victory in a decade. Even this year, he has led the program to an 8-2 record while playing in a competitive conference.
“Lea has the conviction and steadiness of a coach uniquely equipped to meet Penn State’s expectations and build a sustainable championship contender in Happy Valley,” the analyst added.
Clark Lea Responds To HC Vacancy Rumors Tied To James Franklin’s Position in Penn State
Clark Lea has joined the list of several successful head coaches this winter who have already been rumored to join three top-notch programs without a permanent coach. They are Penn State, LSU (who fired Brian Kelly) and Florida (who fired Billy Napier).
Despite the rumors, Lea chose to focus on the job at hand without trying to address the rumors, as he knows what will happen once he starts doing it.
“My fight is for this program first, and they know that,” Lea said of the outside noise via SI. “We don’t talk about anything external, but we stay focused on where we are, who we are, and the climb we’re on. They’ve been incredible that way.
“You’ve got to be careful sometimes with how rumors can start and where they come from. Once you start addressing one, you almost leave yourself susceptible to having to address all of them. And then what have we done? We’ve brought external to the internal and lost our focus.”
According to the prediction market, Lea stands eighth among favorites for James Franklin’s position. The list is led by Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz.
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