Here’s everything you need to know about the Penn State Nittany Lions’ interim head coach, Terry Smith.

After the program’s decision to fire head coach James Franklin earlier this week, Penn State Nittany Lions' fans are eager to find a new coach for the future.

Franklin, who came into the season with an all-time record of 101-42 at Penn State, was widely considered as one of the favorites to win the 2025 College Football National Championship. However, these aspirations quickly disappeared after the Nittany Lions stumbled into a three-game losing streak, resulting in the firing of the 53-year-old head coach.

With Franklin out of the picture, Penn State has named associate head coach and defensive backs coach Terry Smith as the team’s interim head coach for the remainder of the 2025 season.

Here’s everything you need to know about Smith as he gets ready to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in week eight.

Playing Career

As a former standout quarterback at Gateway High School, Smith would stay in-state for his college and attend Penn State. He would go on to have a terrific career with the Nittany Lions as a wide receiver, totaling 108 catches for 1,825 yards and 15 touchdowns in his four years with the program.

Smith’s impressive college stint caught the attention of the NFL, and he was selected in the 11th round of the 1992 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins.

Unfortunately for the star playmaker, he would only play one season in the NFL before heading up north to play in the Canadian Football League.

During his three years in the CFL, Smith spent one season with the Toronto Argonauts in 1993 and two seasons with the Shreveport Pirates before finishing his professional career in the Arena Football League with the Albany Firebirds in 1996.

Coach Career

Following his professional football career, Smith would return to Pennsylvania and transition into his coaching career. He would spend three seasons as the passing game coordinator for Duquesne University from 1997-2000 before eventually becoming the head coach of his high school alumni mater. At Gateway, Smith would go on to post a 101–30 record, while managing to send 23 of his players to the FBS level in his 11 years as the head coach.

In 2013, Smith would make the jump back to the college level, where he would spend one season with Temple University as the team’s wide receivers coach. But after his quick stop with the Owls, he would make his return to Penn State in 2014 as the program’s defensive backs coach under Franklin. Smith maintains this role until the present day, while also being named the associate head coach in 2016.

Throughout his time as the Nittany Lions’ defensive backs coach, Smith helped develop multiple talented players who would eventually make it to the NFL, including Pittsburgh Steelers’ cornerback Joey Porter Jr. and Chicago Bears’ safety Jaquan Brisker.

Now, Smith will be tasked to get Penn State back on track after a brutal 3-3 start to the year.