What to Know About Potential Penn State Coaching Candidate Brent Key

The Georgia Tech head coach has his alma mater in playoff contention. But how would he fit at Penn State?

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key celebrates after a victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Penn State has embarked on one of college football’s most high-profile coaching searches to replace James Franklin, who was fired Oct. 12. Athletic Director Pat Kraft promised a nationwide search for the coach he said possesses a “vision of championships.”

Penn State is hiring a football coach for the first time since 2014, when Franklin replaced Bill O’Brien. It’s a situation no one thought Penn State would be in this year, but there’s certainly talent to choose from.   

We’re scouring the list of candidates for the opening at Penn State. In the latest edition of our profile series, we spotlight Georgia Tech coach Brent Key and whether he’s a fit for the Nittany Lions.  

RELATED: Penn Stat negotiated a substantially reduced buyout with James Franklin

Brent Key at a glance

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key during the fourth quarter against the NC State Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium. | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

• School: Georgia Tech

• Age: 47

• Hometown: Clay, Alabama

• Head coaching experience: Third season at Georgia Tech (interim head coach in 2022)

• Where he has coached: Key began his coaching career at Georgia Tech, his alma mater, as a graduate assistant in 2001. After one season at  Western Carolina, Key moved to UCF, where he spent 11 years, rising from graduate assistant to offensive line coach, recruiting coordinator, offensive coordinator and assistant head coach. Key worked for Nick Saban as Alabama’s offensive line coach before rejoining Georgia Tech’s staff in 2019. He was the Yellow Jackets’ interim head coach after Geoff Collins was fired in September of 2022. He earned the full-time job after going 4-4 that season.

What to know about Brent Key

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King and head coach Brent Key celebrate after a touchdown against the Syracuse Orange in the fourth quarter at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Key has Georgia Tech contending for a College Football Playoff bid in just Year 4. Prior to Key’s promotion, the Yellow Jackets won a total of nine games in their three previous seasons. Key has not had a losing season, and Georgia Tech is 9-1 and on its way to the program’s best season since 2014, when it went 11-3 and won the Orange Bowl. 

Key’s 14 wins in his first two full seasons are tied for third in Georgia Tech history, and he led the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back bowl berths for the first time since 2013-14. 

In 2024, Key led Georgia Tech to two wins over top-10 teams (No. 10 Florida State and No. 4 Miami). He’s an offensive-minded coach and a former offensive lineman whose team leads the ACC in total offense this season, averaging nearly 500 yards per game. 

RELATED: Penn State's Terry Smith makes emotional coaching pitch

Why Brent Key would fit at Penn State

Key is above .500 in the stat Penn State fans value. He’s 7-6 against AP top-25 opponents and 2-2 against the top-10. Unlike other coaches Penn State is targeting, Key has shown that his team will turn it up a notch against ranked opponents. That’s something Penn State typically wasn’t able to do under Franklin. That alone would get the fans on Key’s side. 

Additionally, Key has done a solid job recruiting given his circumstances at Georgia Tech, which is essential to Kraft, who said he wants a coach “who will attract elite talent.” Key signed the nation’s 21st-ranked recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite, just six spots below Franklin’s. And his 2027 class ranks 23rd. He also signed former Texas A&M quarterback Haynes King from the transfer portal in 2023, turning him into one of the top quarterbacks in the ACC. 

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Why Brent Key might not fit at Penn State

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key celebrates after a victory over the Syracuse Orange at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Though he’s just 47, Key is Georgia Tech royalty. He was a four-year starting lineman during the Yellow Jackets’ late-1990s heyday when they went to four straight bowl games. In early November, Key delivered the most assertive non-denial denial of any coach in this carousel.

"Since I came back here [in 2016], since I was named the head coach here, outside of the time with my family, every waking second of my life has gone towards building this program to get to the point that it is right now,” Key said. “So that we can continue three years from now, five years from now, 10 years from now, and continue to elevate this place.

“To be in that conversation, not to be in there for two or three weeks, but to be a consistent team. Not when you lose one game, and people say, 'Oh, the storybook's over.' Nah, it is just the beginning. Slice me open and see what colors I bleed.

Certainly, Key could have interest in Penn State. But he seems entrenched in Atlanta. The farthest north he has coached is Cullowhee, North Carolina. This would be a radical change for both parties. 

Bottom line

The list of candidates is narrowing, and Key is among the more intriguing names. While he doesn’t have a top-tier track record, Key has shown enough to be Penn State’s next head coach. He’s done a fine job recruiting at Georgia Tech and rebuilt a struggling program. Not to mention, he has an offensive background, which Penn State likely wants. But would he leave his alma mater? And would Penn State want him to?