Around college football, there have been a few names that have popped up for the Penn State Nittany Lions and what they might do in their head coaching search.
Among the options that I don't believe are likely for Penn State, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is at the top of that list. As we look around the college football landscape, there are a few coaches who wouldn't be making a good decision by taking the Penn State job, even if it's only three or four coaches.
Freeman is certainly one of them, as he has a great deal at Notre Dame, and is coaching a blue blood essentially.
Despite that reality, some don't believe that Freeman is out of the picture just yet, including a recent report from Tolu Akintunde of Nittany Lions Wire at USA Today.
“Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman is still technically in the picture, but it’s fading fast. Sources say he hasn’t completely ruled Penn State out, but the odds aren’t great. He’s far more likely to wait for a future opening at Ohio State or an NFL team. Still, with a crack in the door, Penn State’s not backing off just yet.
“Bob Chesney, currently at James Madison, has entered the top five. If the big fish stay put—Key at Tech, DeBoer at Bama, Freeman at Notre Dame—Chesney becomes a name to watch. He’s a rising star, and schools like UCLA are already circling, so Penn State may need to move fast if it wants him,” he wrote.
I definitely understand the intrigue around Freeman, and if Penn State had an opportunity to hire him, I'd suggest it does just that.
However, I'm also realistic in these situations.
To see Freeman leave Notre Dame would come as a major surprise, even if the Nittany Lions were to offer him a ton of money.
He's in a good spot to be a head coach nearly wherever he wants, so I don't imagine a scenario where he takes the Penn State job. Of course, we can never say never, but it’d be one of the more shocking hires in this college football landscape.