Matt Campbell Is the 'Absolute Perfect Person' for Penn State, AD Says

Nearly eight months after a wild coaching search, Penn State believes even more that it hit the jackpot with Campbell.

Penn State Nittany Lions football coach Matt Campbell, left, shakes hands with Athletic Director during a press conference at Beaver Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State Athletic Director Pat Kraft effused over Matt Campbell in December, saying that the new Nittany Lions football coach "embodies everything Penn State stands for." Nearly eight months later, Kraft isn't finished handing out praise.

"I think he is the absolute perfect person at the perfect time for Penn State football," Kraft said.

Speaking to reporters in Chicago at Big Ten Media Days, Kraft called the past year "exhausting" personally. He fired head football coach James Franklin, apologized for comments he made with football players that were leaked online and continued to oversee the largest financial project in Penn State athletic history, the $700 million renovation Beaver Stadium.

But Kraft also doubled down on his support for Campbell, whom he hired after a nearly eight-week coaching search that nationally was called a "disaster." Kraft himself said that the search process would fuel an entertaining Netflix documentary.

Now, as Campbell prepares for his first season as Penn State's head coach, Kraft said he's even more resolute about the hiring decision, even though the process didn't necessarily begin with the two of them together.

"He's exactly the person today [who he was] when I had my first conversation with him," Kraft said. "What you all see every day in, day out is who he is. He's genuine, he's hardworking, he's focused and he understands the opportunity and the challenge that Penn State football brings."

'A perfect fit'

Penn State Nittany Lions football coach Matt Campbell hugs Athletic Director Pat Kraft during a press conference at Beaver Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After accepting the Penn State job, Campbell said it was "paralyzingly hard" to leave Iowa State. But Penn State had been one of those programs he watched from afar during his 10 years with the Cyclones.

"If we were ever going to leave Iowa State, it was going to have to be a school and an institution that really fit how I believe and what I believe and how you build culture, how you build a team and how you build forward," Campbell said in Chicago. "I think for the last six months, we've been reminded why it was such a great fit for us at Penn State.

"I think the history, what it means to play there, how you do it, the integrity, the character and
the class in its finest moments, what Penn State football has really stood for, really resonated with myself and certainly my background. It really had to be a perfect fit, and that's really why."

Kraft targeted multiple coaches before Campbell, zeroing in on BYU's Kalani Sitake in late November and early December before Sitake decided to remain with the Cougars. Sitake even said that Penn State "got the right guy" when it hired Campbell.

Kraft agreed, though he initially thought Sitake was the right guy.

"I believe that [Campbell] understands what it means to be, and the importance of the role of, the head football coach at Penn State, and he doesn't take that lightly," Kraft said. "I think he has built a culture in a very short time that our fans, our alumni, everybody will be very, very proud of. And they will be an incredibly competitive, tough, physical football team."

Campbell remade the football program quickly, bringing in 55 new players, including 24 of his former Cyclones. But he also retained 52 Penn State players, led by offensive lineman Anthony Donkoh, who Campbell said was the first Nittany Lion to tell him that he would stay.

"He’s very humble and he also makes sure everybody understands that everything we do is bigger than ourselves," Donkoh said. "That’s important to him. Whatever games we win or whatever trophies we win will last for only so long, but how we treat people will last a lifetime. That’s what he does himself."

Kraft noted in Chicago that, a year ago, he went to Big Ten Media Days in Las Vegas expecting the football team to compete for a national championship. He wouldn't make that same prediction this year, though Kraft still said he has high hopes and expectations about the program's future.

"He's a teacher of the game," Kraft said. "He's built a staff that is teaching the game, This is why I'm excited about what the future holds, because I get to see what's happening day in and day out. He's as good a human as you can be around. He loves his players, loves this place, and he's just fit right in and he's been an incredible partner for me. We talk all the time about all things, and he is, I think, one of the best I've ever been around in that regard."

Penn State Nittany Lions football coach Matt Campbell speaks during Big Ten Media Days in Chicago. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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