Penn State’s football team week started with clarity on the coaching carousel, not on the field. With Matt Rhule locked to Nebraska through 2032, Louisville’s Jeff Brohm has emerged as the new favorite to replace James Franklin, listed at 40 percent on Kalshi, followed by Ohio State OC Brian Hartline, Missouri’s Eliah Drinkwitz, and Iowa State’s Matt Campbell, per Brett McMurphy of On3. That backdrop only heightens the urgency around an offense that just sputtered again.
After the loss to Ohio State, interim coach Terry Smith acknowledged the passing game had to change, and he put the responsibility on himself.
“We’re continuing to examine that. We keep saying that.. It’s my job to make sure it gets changed… We will throw the ball downfield this week,” Smith said, noting Penn State still leaned on horizontal concepts in Columbus more than he wants, per Tyler Donohue of 247Sports on X. The promise is simple for the interim: stretch the field.
The film has told the same story for weeks. Safe perimeter throws and quick outs have protected a shaky rhythm, but they have also shrunk windows for explosive plays and allowed defenses to squeeze routes.
Without consistent vertical attempts, safeties sit, cornerbacks squat, and the run game loses air. A few early shots, even if they fall incomplete, can change coverage math and open crossers that have been smothered.
Smith’s task intersects with the wider search. Brohm drawing favorite status, with Hartline, Drinkwitz, and Campbell still on the board, underscores what Penn State wants: a modern passing identity paired with physicality.
If Smith can coax a credible vertical plan in a week, he buys his roster belief and gives the committee cleaner tape to evaluate personnel fit for whoever is next.
One national voice has floated another twist. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg urged Texas A&M’s Mike Elko to consider Penn State's football team, citing his Northeast ties, his track record, and the program’s clearer historical runway to titles compared to College Station. The case is straightforward, resources are limited in-state barriers, and a ceiling that still sells.
The immediate test is not a name on a shortlist; it is a structure on Saturday. If Penn State truly pushes the ball down the field, the offense can breathe again, receivers get rhythm routes at full speed, and the box lightens. The scoreboard will tell you quickly if that promise turned into a plan.
