The Penn State head coaching search has been an absolute mess so far, and there are more questions than ever. Finding a replacement for James Franklin has not been as easy as many probably anticipated. It’s a process that feels like it’s going on forever, and the candidates are getting weirder and weirder by the day. 

Early on in the process, the Nittany Lions focused on several big names. That included current Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti, who they had heavy interest in. That pursuit ended quickly with Cignetti inking a new contract extension. Their attempts at others like Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman also proved futile. Penn State was forced to reset very early on. 

Throughout the process, the Nittany Lions have had interest in several tremendous coaching candidates, including Bob Chesney from James Madison, who has since taken the job with the UCLA Bruins. There was some mutual interest with Lincoln Riley (USC), but that also didn’t work out. Throw in the likes of Kalen DeBoer (Alabama), and there have been no bites despite some huge early swings. 

It appeared that Penn State may have finally had their man with the recent reports of interest between them and BYU head coach Kalani Sitake, but to no avail. Things fell through during the process with Sitake, choosing to stick with the Cougars instead. Once again, the Nittany Lions were forced to go back to the drawing board. 

The new name on the block 

There have been some recent whispers that there is a new name that Penn State is focusing on – Houston head coach Willie Fritz. After verifying with a couple different sources, I can confidently say that there is substantial interest from the Nittany Lion program in Fritz. It’s uncertain just how much, if any, there is from Fritz’s side as of now, but that is a coach to watch closely moving forward.

You would expect, however, that things could move quickly if there was mutual interest. We are about to move past National Signing Day, and the Transfer Portal opening will be here before you know it. It’s hard to sell potential recruits and portal options on a program without a head coach and staff in place. 

An odd fit 

Fritz is widely considered to be a very good football coach in the industry. On the FBS level, he has routinely built struggling programs. That includes a successful tenure with Georgia Southern from 2014-15 and leading Tulane to consecutive seasons with double digit victories to end his 8-year stop. In just two seasons, Fritz has already turned around the Cougars, sitting with a 9-3 record this season. 

In total, Fritz has recorded a 84-65 record in 12 seasons as a head coach on the FBS level. If you include his other head coaching stops at D2 Central Missouri and Sam Houston, which was an FCS program at the time, he has managed to go 221-127 overall. There is no question that Fritz is a tremendous coach, and he has proven that time and time again. 

The issue with the fit of Fritz with Penn State is multilayered. First and foremost, he has no ties to the Nittany Lion program and the area of the country in general. In his college coaching career that dates all the way back to 1982, Fritz has spent time in the following states: Georgia, Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and Louisiana. 

While some will argue that the cultural aspect isn’t that big of a deal, it could be a hindrance on the recruiting side. Without deep knowledge for the state of Pennsylvania and surrounding states, it could hurt the team’s ability to try and put a fence around the area and keep as much talent as possible at home. That should be a major concern. 

Fritz is also already 65 years old with his career entering the final stretch. Is he dynamic enough of a coach to settle for potentially a smaller shelf life? Feels like an odd move considering you just moved off of Coach Franklin in hopes of trying to get over the big game hump. 

Perhaps I’m underselling Fritz and his potential impact if he does end up as the head coach with the Nittany Lions. On the surface, it does feel like a move out of desperation and limited options. With how the process is playing out, there just might not be many cleaner options left available.