Penn State Was Actually Very Close to Not Hiring Matt Campbell

There was once a time when many thought BYU head coach Kalani Sitake would take the Penn State job. After moving on from head coach James Franklin, there was certainly a feeling that Sitake, at the very least, was going to be the top candidate for one of the better job openings in America. 

Sitake, who seemingly has a ton of respect for both parties, decided to stick with BYU. Reports indicated that, leading up to the hiring, Matt Campbell wasn't actually the top candidate, but BYU eventually came in with a new offer to keep him around.

It's interesting to think about what might have been had he gotten the job, as he's very well respected around the college football world. Speaking about his decision to stay at BYU, and better yet, not come to Penn State, Sitake had a lot of really nice things to say about the Nittany Lions, and it doesn't sound like there are any hard feelings about what happened.

"Well, first of all, I was really honored. And I think I've said a lot about it. I've had tons of respect for Penn State," said Sitake, per Yahoo. "That's a storied program and an amazing university. [Penn State's pursuit] was, to me, it was a huge compliment. It was like, wow, you know, that they would consider me. And I met some amazing people with that whole process.

"But this is my alma mater. This is the school that I cheered for growing up. And then I got to play for an amazing head coach, LaVell Edwards, a legend. And I became a captain for him. And he became a huge mentor for me. And so, yeah, this is home. It's an honor for me to have other schools that are interested in me, especially amazing places. But this, this is home."

Just like many do at Penn State, BYU and the Nittany Lions both have a lot of respect for one another. There's a reason both programs have been among the best in America for much of their existence, and that will only continue with Campbell and Sitake running them.