Ever since James Franklin was let go as head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions, the school has been looking for his replacement. Penn State officials have likely been contacting their network of contacts to find their next head coach.
On Monday, it appears that the coaching search has narrowed down to one person.
Who’s Potentially New Penn State Head Coach?
According to a report from On3, which was posted on X, BYU head coach Kalani Sitake is being considered the odds-on favorite to become Penn State’s new head coach.
NEW: BYU’s Kalani Sitake has emerged as Penn State’s top target to become the Nittany Lions’ next head coach, @Brett_McMurphy, @PeteNakos & @clowfb report👀
Intel: https://t.co/hs8mzy20Cs pic.twitter.com/1RDMWl8Chf
— On3 (@On3sports) December 1, 2025
Sitake has worked hard to turn the BYU football program back into a team in the conversation for national championships. He has done an excellent job of taking the Cougars to new heights.
According to last week’s College Football Playoff Rankings, BYU came in at No. 11, which would put the Cougars potentially into the College Football Playoff. According to reports, a team meeting was scheduled for Monday at BYU. Liam Blutman of Barstool Sports posted about Sitake’s timetable for the day on Monday afternoon.
“BYU’s emergency team meeting today was cancelled as Sitake has spent time today visiting with prominent members of BYU’s football family that include the widow of LaVell Edwards BYU has gone to the Church asking for more money BYU is TRYING HARD to make this ‘miracle’ happen and has gone above the Athletic Director in doing so”, Blutman wrote.
BYU’s emergency team meeting today was cancelled as Sitake has spent time today visiting with prominent members of BYU’s football family that include the widow of LaVell Edwards
BYU has gone to the Church asking for more money
BYU is TRYING HARD to make this “miracle” happen…
— Liam Blutman (@Blutman27) December 1, 2025
In some additional reporting out of the On3 report and posted on Monday on X by 103.9 and 98.3 FM The Fan radio host Ben Criddle out of Salt Lake City, “Sources have told On3 that the Nittany Lions have made clear to Sitake that they will offer a lucrative salary pool, including defensive coordinator Jay Hill.”
“The Cougars’ 56-19 (.747) record since the 2020 season ranks as the seventh-best mark among FBS programs behind only Georgia, Ohio State, Alabama, Oregon, Notre Dame and Michigan.”
Criddle added, “Penn State’s DC was the highest paid assistant coach in college football this past season.”
Sitake has been BYU’s head coach for 10 seasons, assuming the role in 2016. He has an 83-44 coaching record and has led BYU to double-digit win seasons in four of the past five years. Sitake also boasts a 5-2 record in bowl games, leading BYU to wins in notable contests such as the 2022 New Mexico Bowl and the 2024 Alamo Bowl.
He played college football at BYU between 1997 and 2000. Sitake has been a stellar leader for the Big 12 Conference school. This season, BYU is 11-1 overall, 8-1 in Big 12 play. The Cougars are averaging 34 points per game on offense, while giving up just 17.8 points per game on defense.
According to the PFSN CFB Offense Impact metrics, Penn State has an impact score of 83.6 and grades out to a B. The Cougars are averaging 219.5 passing yards per game and 194.5 rushing yards per game. Those numbers truly stand out in Sitake’s favor.
Nothing has been finalized yet regarding Sitake joining Penn State. With the recent flurry of college football coaching changes, though, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Nittany Lions were able to pull Sitake out of Utah, the Beehive State, for a new gig in front of those rabid Penn State fans in Happy Valley.
