Penn State poaching Jim Knowles sends clear message: James Franklin, Nittany Lions ready to take next step – CBS Sports
If not listed, please contact your TV provider.James Franklin has picked up his first win over Ohio State since 2016.Penn State poached Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles over the weekend. While Ryan Day and the Buckeyes were busy celebrating their first national title in 10 years with a party at Ohio Stadium, Knowles was putting pen to paper and signing a contract with Penn State that’ll see him making more than $3 million annually.Knowles leaving Ohio State was no surprise. His name had been attached to other high-profile defensive coordinator openings, such as Oklahoma, and with rumblings about Knowles not having a perfect relationship with Day or Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson, plenty were speculating he was looking to get out. The fact he did so by making what’s considered a lateral move at best to Penn State surely raised an eyebrow or fifty.Regardless of whether you saw it coming, it’s impossible to argue that this isn’t a significant win for Penn State and a serious statement of intent.New coordinators with big names are nothing new at Penn State. It feels like James Franklin is forced to replace his coordinators every offseason. On offense, it’s usually because it hasn’t worked. On defense, it’s because schools hire his guy away. After spending six seasons as defensive coordinator, Brent Pry was hired away by Virginia Tech following the 2021 season. He was replaced by Manny Diaz, who lasted two seasons before getting the head coach job at Duke. Tom Allen spent the 2024 season with the Lions before taking the same job at Clemson a few weeks ago.The difference is that Franklin didn’t hire any of those previous names away from a direct competitor, and he certainly didn’t do it while that competitor was still picking confetti out of its hair following a national title.Knowles’ only time as a head coach was six seasons at the helm of his alma mater, Cornell. Since then, he’s been the defensive coordinator at Duke and Oklahoma State before taking the Ohio State job. While he may not be a household name, he’s long been one of the most respected defensive minds in the sport with fellow coaches, and he helped turn around an Ohio State defense that’s never been short on talent but was coming up short on success under Kerry Coombs.While Ohio State will reload on the defensive side of the ball in 2025, Penn State has plenty of returning talent. Abdul Carter is gone and difficult to replace, but guys like Dani Dennis-Sutton, Smith Vilbert, Zane Durant, Dominic DeLuca and a host of others are bypassing the NFL Draft to return. On offense, Penn State has convinced its two-headed monster of running backs — Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen — to come back, as well as Drew Allar.If any of this sounds familiar, it’s a lot like what happened at Ohio State last offseason — the kind of roster retention that helped the Buckeyes win a national title.Which is what makes this hire so fascinating. The 2024 season was somewhat bittersweet for the Nittany Lions. On one hand, the program reached the College Football Playoff for the first time and won two games in the postseason. On the other hand, the season once again included a loss to Ohio State, and despite reaching the semifinals, the Lions lost to Notre Dame, extending James Franklin’s poor run against top-five competition. The kind of competition you need to beat to win national titles.But the Knowles hire and the contract given to him are a shot across the bow of the Big Ten. Ohio State has a lot to replace, but it will still be Ohio State. Oregon isn’t going anywhere, either, and we don’t know exactly what Michigan will look like. But Penn State wants you to know that its intention next year is to win the Big Ten and win a national title.© 2004-2025 CBS Interactive. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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