Penn State Hiring Kansas OC Andy Kotelnicki
The Penn State Nittany Lions are stuck in one of the toughest divisions in football, where a 10-2 record is only good enough for third place in the Big Ten East.
That’s just the way things are when you share your division with the likes of Michigan (12-0) and Ohio State (11-1), and with that way of life comes heightened expectations. The Nittany Lions played formidable defense in 2023, allowing just 11.42 points per game. Ironically, that’s good for third in the country, but also third in their division, behind Michigan (10.25 ppg) and Ohio State (11.00 ppg).
Offensively, Penn State was still very good, scoring 37. 2 points per game, which ranks 14th in the country and just behind Michigan (37.6 ppg) for tops in the Big Ten. However, that wasn’t good enough for Penn State head coach James Franklin, who fired OC and quarterbacks coach Mike Yurcich with just two games remaining in the 2023 season. Now, Franklin has found his replacement, and he hails from Big 12 country.
Kansas offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki has been one of the biggest reasons for the Jayhawks’ resurrection under Lance Leipold, but now he’ll be donning a different shade of blue as he’s expected to become the next offensive coordinator in Happy Valley.
According to Bruce Feldman, Kotelnicki is expected to be the next OC at Penn State.
Kotelnicki has worked under Lance Leipold since 2013, and followed him to three different stops along the way, beginning at Wisconsin-White Water for two seasons, at Buffalo for six seasons, and in Lawrence over the last three years.
His final season with the Jayhawks might’ve been his best, as Kotelnicki helped coordinate a Kansas offense that ranked No. 30 in scoring (33.6 ppg), No. 9 in rushing (211.33 ypg), No. 29 in total offense (434 ypg) and No. 8 yards per play (7.01 ypp).
With Kotelnicki out, Leipold has already elevated Jim Zebrowski to Co-Offensive Coordinator, which should help make the transition without their primary play-caller a bit easier.
Kansas is 8-4 on the year and awaits its bowl destination, which will be announced sometime on Sunday.
