Copyright Mechanicsburg Patriot News
Former Heisman winner and current FOX Sports analyst Matt Leinart joined the Pardon My Take podcast recently to discuss all things college football, including the Penn State program. Leinart shared his thoughts on the Nittany Lions going from national title contenders to firing head coach James Franklin in just a few weeks. “Is that the biggest fall from like college football in the history of the sport?” he asked. “Like, what’s happened with them in three weeks? They were one play away from beating Oregon, who I still think is really good, to literally losing to UCLA, and then Northwestern at home. “I don’t know; it’s crazy. It’s so bizarre.” James Franklin was fired as the Penn State head coach earlier this month, the day after losing to Northwestern at home as the Nittany Lions dropped back-to-back games as 20-plus point favorites. As for who Penn State should hire next, Leinart mentioned a couple of Big Ten head coaches, although one in Curt Cignetti recently signed a massive contract extension. “It’s the same two names that you have heard and that we’re going to hear in Cignetti and Coach Rhule. It’s going to be those two, I think,” Matt Leinart said. “Rhule is just the obvious one. … Rhule went there, he’s close with the AD." As Leinart said, Rhule played at Penn State and is close friends with AD Pat Kraft. If it doesn’t end up being Rhule, Leinart believes a current Big Ten coordinator in Ohio State OC Brian Hartline is a possibility, as well. “Joel Klatt mentioned this on our call, so I’ll definitely give him the credit. Brian Hartline was a name that he threw out there from Ohio State, who’s calling plays and hasn’t been a head coach,” Leinart said. “So maybe you go that route of a young guy who hasn’t had that experience but can recruit his [expletive] off and what he’s done at Ohio State.”
