Rising college football coach gaining traction for Penn State job

With former Penn State coach James Franklin now officially headed to Virginia Tech, a new candidate is making a meteoric rise in prediction market circles for the Penn State head coaching job. While Missouri's Eli Drinkwitz has been the favorite for weeks, another candidate has jumped from a 3% chance at the job per Kalshi a week ago up to 30% on Saturday morning-- James Madison coach Bob Chesney. Funny enough, Chesney was generally Kalshi's No. 2 candidate for the Virginia Tech job behind James Franklin.

The Rising Candidate

Chesney hails from Pennsylvania and played college football at Division III Dickinson, a Pennsylvania school. Chensey coached at a pair of small Pennsylvania schools early in his coaching career. The 46-year old coach has won at lower levels of college football and is now making his name at James Madison, which might be the veritable cradle of new-wave college football coaches.

Chesney's Resume

Indiana's Curt Cignetti came from JMU, and Chesney, a defensive coach by training, has replaced him with the Dukes. James Madison is 18-5 in Chesney's two seasons and their defense leads the Sun Belt Conference in scoring allowed and yardage allowed. James Madison's sole loss of the season came at ACC foe Louisville, and the Dukes have won eight of their nine victories by double-digit margins.

The Financial Details

One major factor in favor of Chesney as a candidate is that he will likely represent significant savings. Yes, Penn State recently settled James Franklin's buyout claim for the relatively reasonable fee of $9 million, but Chensey, who is reportedly currently earning $833,495 at James Madison, can still see a significant raise but fall well below many of the sport's highest paid coaches in his initial PSU contract. It's a big gap between $833,495 and the $13 million per year that LSU and Florida are purportedly currently waving at Lane Kiffin, for instance. It's also unlikely that a reported $1.25 million to James Madison to buyout Chesney will be a sticking point.

Other Possibilities for PSU?

Missouri's Eli Drinkwitz retains a slight lead as the favorite for the Penn State job. Georgia Tech's Brent Key has also seen a bump in his chances, and along with Drinkwitz and Chesney, he is the lone candidate whose chances at the job are currently above 7%.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.