College Football HQ

Penn State coach job tied to SEC coach-- and it's not Lane Kiffin

Joe Cox|
The Penn State vacancy was recently tied to a current SEC head coach by On3's Chris Low.
The Penn State vacancy was recently tied to a current SEC head coach by On3's Chris Low. | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

In this story:

Penn State Nittany LionsVanderbilt Commodores

While Lane Kiffin is the biggest name in the current coaching carousel, a longtime college football reporter tied a different SEC head coach to the open Penn State job. On3's Chris Low, long a noted reporter in SEC circles, suggests that the school will ultimately make "a serious run" at Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea. Low doesn't discount Lea's ties to Vanderbilt, but seems to think the PSU possibility is a serious one.

Penn State parted ways with James Franklin after three straight losses saw the Nittany Lions dip from No. 3 in the nation to now struggling to reach bowl eligibility. Franklin, of course, came to prominence at Vanderbilt himself before leaving after three seasons to take the Penn State job.

"A serious run" from Penn State

Lea's situation at Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt clearly recognizes that Lea, who has Vanderbilt at 7-1 and ranked No. 9 in the current AP poll, will be a major national priority. Low was replying to a report from On3's Pete Nakos that Vanderbilt is determined to make sure Low's compensation and the school's NIL commitment are substantial enough to keep him in Nashville. Nakos reports that Lea is earning $3.1 million this season.

"[M]y objective to continue partnering with Clark Lea as our head football coach for a long, long time," said Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Storey Lee, according to Nakos's report.

Vanderbilt hired Lea from Notre Dame, where he was the defensive coordinator under just fired LSU coach Brian Kelly. Lea had risen to that position after Mike Elko left Notre Dame to run the defense at Texas A&M.

Lea's history

Lea was just 9-27 in his first three years at Vanderbilt, posting a 2-22 SEC mark during that run. But a 7-6 season in 2024 included a shocking upset of then-No. 1 Alabama. Lea and a successful offensive staff over from New Mexico State have built a 7-1 team that's currently No. 9 in the nation and facing a major road challenge at Texas this weekend.

Penn State's troubles

Penn State's situation is made more difficult because the school is somewhere between a rebuild and a perennial power. Penn State was a national power under Joe Paterno from the late 1960s to the late 2000s. But Paterno lost his job in the furor after longtime defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky's sex crimes came to light.

After two seasons under Bill O'Brien, Penn State turned to Franklin, who took Penn State to five top ten finishes since 2016, his third year at the school. But Franklin won just a single Big Ten title and never progressed farther than the CFP semifinals, which he reached in 2024.

Clark Lea is under contract at Vanderbilt through the end of 2029, but with big-profile programs on the hunt, it's safe to assume that Low's report might mean that we're far from the end of Lea's offseason developments, be they a hiring elsewhere or a hefty raise from Vanderbilt (or both).

Published
Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.

Home/News