Who is the head coach of Penn State Football?

The Penn State Nittany Lions are notable for being one of the most popular college football teams in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), as of January 2025. Representing Pennsylvania State University, the team played competed for the first time during the 1889 season and has since then, competed 131 times as of the 2024 season. The Penn State Nittany Lions are notable for being members of the Big Ten Conference in the college football scenario.

The Penn State Nittany Lions college football team has been notable for winning the national championship four times and the Conference championship four times, as of January 2025. They have also participated in 53 bowl games and has achieved an overall record of 921-403-37, as of January 2025. The Penn State Nittany Lions also uses Beaver Stadium as their home for the games. They have also developed rivalries with teams like Michigan Wolverines, the Michigan State Spartans, the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Maryland Terrapins and the Pittsburgh Panthers over the years.

Penn State Nittany Lions football head coach

James Franklin is serving as the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions, as of January 2025. He is in the midst of a ten-year contract extension worth $8.5 million which can increase by performance related incentives, as per College Football Network. Hailing from Langhorne, Pennsylvania, United States, he played collegiate football at East Stroudsburg (Pa.) University, where he earned MVP honors by setting seven records during his senior year.

Following the end of James Franklin's career as a college football player, he became a football coach and started his coaching career with the Kutztown Golden Bears in 1995. Since then, he has gone to coach several other colleges teams and even the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). James Franklin also served as the head coach of the Vanderbilt Commodores from 2011 to 2013. He took over as the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions in 2014 and has been with the team since then. Notably, he won the Big Ten Championship in 2016. Moreover, he was also declared as the Sporting News Coach of the Year, Woody Hayes National Coach of the Year, Dave McLain Big Ten Coach of the Year and Associated Press Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2016, as per Penn State's official website.

Read More:- Penn State National Championship Wins

Penn State Nittany Lions football coaching staff in 2025

The following table details all the coaches associated with the Penn State Nittany Lions college football team, as of January 2025:

Name	Role
Terry M. Smith	Associate Head Coach/Defensive Recruiting Coordinator/Cornerbacks
Ja'Juan Seider	Assistant Head Coach/Co-Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs
Tom Allen	Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Andy Kotelnicki	Offensive Coordinator
Justin Lustig	Special Teams Coordinator/Outside Linebackers/Nickels
Deion Barnes	Defensive Line
Marques Hagans	Offensive Recruiting Coordinator/Wide Receivers
Ty Howle	Co-Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends
Anthony Poindexter	Co-defensive Coordinator/Safeties
Phil Trautwein	Offensive Line
Torrence Brown	Defensive Graduate Assistant
Jordan Lucas	Defensive Graduate Assitant
Danny O'Brien	Quarterbacks

Penn State Nittany Lions football support staff in 2025

The following table includes all the support staff associated with the Penn State Nittany Lions college football team, as of January 2025:

Name	Role
Kevin Threlkel	Director of Football Administration
Ben Kerr	Director of Football Administration
Will Reimann	Director of Football Research and Strategy
Destiny Rodriguez	Director of External Operations
Thomas Allen	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Keith Bruno	Special Teams Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Dan Connor	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Mark Dupuis	Offensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Vic Hall	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Frank Leonard	Offensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Jeffrey McInerney	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
David Parker	Graduate Assistant
Bill Queisert	Offensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
David Rocco	Offensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Eric Sachse	Special Teams Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Robb Smith	Offensive Analyst and Analytics Coordinator
Zach Terrill	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
James Urban	Offensive Analyst and Analytics Coordinator
Charles Walker	Defensive Analyst & Analytics Coordinator
Dann Kabala	Director of Player Relations
Brett Arnold	Assistant Director of Player Relations
Jordan Hill	Director of Life Skills
Lauren Geppert	Director of Player Engagement
Jevin Stone	Video Director
Blake Yunker	Assistant Video Director
Andy Frank	General Manager of Personnel and Recruitment
Kenny Sanders	Director of Player Personnel
Caleb Tyler	Director of Recruiting Content
Bob Palko	Director of High School Relations
Khalil Ahmad	Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel and Recruitment
D.J. Bryant	Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel and Recruitment
Catherine Kennedy	Recruiting Coordinator for Operations and Visits
Chris Mahon	Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel
Alan Zemaitis	Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel
Rashad Elby	Assistant Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel
Karsyn Kehler	Assistant Recruiting Coordinator for Operations and Visits
Rashad Rich	Assistant Recruiting Coordinator for Personnel
Heidi Erb	Assistant to Head Coach
Wally Richardson	Director of the Football Letterman's Club
Angie Hummel	Administrative Support Assistant

Penn State Nittany Lions past head coaches

The following table is an account of all the previous head coaches for the Penn State Nittany Lions college football team:

Coach Name	Years
George W. Hawkins	1892–1895
Samuel B. Newton	1896–1898
Sam Boyle	1899
Pop Golden	1900–1902
Daniel A. Reed	1903
Tom Fennell	1904–1908
Bill Hollenback	1909, 1911–1914
Jack Hollenback	1910
Dick Harlow	1915–1917
Hugo Bezdek	1918–1929
Bob Higgins	1930–1948
Joe Bedenk	1949
Rip Engle	1950–1965
Joe Paterno	1966–2011
Tom Bradley	2011
Bill O'Brien	2012–2013