A tough offensive line coach is a necessity for a winning program, and the Nittany Lions have that in Ryan Clanton.
If you were unsure of who that WWE character was out on the Penn State Spring Ball practice field coaching up the offensive line, it is OL Coach Ryan Clanton.
You would never confuse Clanton as a quarterback's coach or a defensive back's coach. He is a guy who was literally made to be an offensive line officienado.
Clanton made some headlines on Thursday after Penn State's practice session, where he was asked what traits his guys need to have. He responded in perfect fashion, saying that being a "dog" (or dawg) is a non-negotiable in his room.
He doubled down by saying that his players have to be "violent" and not afraid to "run through someone's face."
Sometimes coaching messages like that don't land because you look at the guy saying it and know that he isn't about his message. That just couldn't be further from the truth with Clanton.
Clanton made his career completely in football. He began his college playing career literally at the bottom. He attended City College in 2008 and 2009 before transferring to Oregon to play both tackle and guard under Chip Kelly's high-paced offenses.
Clanton's career in Oregon was a storied one as he played in a National Championship in 2011 and ended his career by being a team captain.
He had a cup of coffee in the NFL before transitioning completely to the life of coaching.
He started as a high school coach in 2013 before getting his first college opportunity at Ventura College for three seasons. After his time at Ventura College, he went to Northern Iowa for four seasons as he worked his way up to the offensive coordinator position.
Campbell poached him from the UNI program in 2023 to take over the Cyclones' offensive line. He has stayed with Campbell over the past three seasons and has now made the move with Campbell to Penn State.
Clanton is the type of coach that players love to compete for. He is a guy who is going to challenge his players and get the most out of them while doing so.
For a team and a regime that is starting fresh, having a great foundation is a requirement. Out of all of the jobs on the staff, Clanton's may be the most important as this new staff takes over.
On good teams, the offensive line is the personality of the entire team. If that proves true, the Nittany Lions are going to be one nasty bunch.