Who Will Penn State Hire as New HC? Latest Report Links New Candidate amid Rumors

Iowa State's Matt Campbell is being targeted by Penn State as the school's next head coach.

According to On3, "Campbell has emerged as the Nittany Lions' top target and the two are working to finalize a deal."

Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger and ESPN's Pete Thamel confirmed the news:

Given how bizarre Penn State's coaching search has seemed from the outside—basically every prominent school with a vacancy has already filled it sans the Nittany Lions—Campbell would be a very strong, and logical, choice in Happy Valley.

Penn State already missed out on potential targets like BYU's Kalani Sitake and Louisville's Jeff Brohm, and the coaching search beyond Campbell won't sound terribly promising to most supporters in Happy Valley.

According to Ralph D. Russo, Bruce Feldman and Chris Vannini of The Athletic, "Other names in the mix this week included former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll, who has the support of the Pegula family that owns the Buffalo Bills and are big Penn State donors. Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees have also been in the mix, and interim head coach Terry Smith has gotten support from current and former players."

Campbell, 46, went 35-15 in five years at Toledo (2011-15) before taking over at Iowa State. He's led the Cyclones to a 72-55 record in that time, taking the program to seven bowls, and has been named the Big 12 Coach of the Year three times.

Before Campbell, Iowa State suffered through nine losing seasons in a 10-year span. Since his hiring, the Cyclones have put together nine winning seasons in nine years, and last season's 11 wins was the most in program history.

At Penn State he would have access to a more talented tier of recruits, though he would have some major rebuilding to do in that regard given the prospect exodus Penn State has endured since firing James Franklin. The Nittany Lions currently rank 155th in 247Sports' Composite recruiting rankings for the Class of 2026, with just two commits.

Some clarity on the coaching front would undoubtedly help. And hiring Campbell would be a very strong conclusion to what has been a highly questionable process.