Joe Paterno Replacement: 5 Legit, and 5 Wish List Candidates to Replace JoePa

When situations like the current Penn State scandal emerge, football takes a back seat.

Unfortunately, because of these events, there are wounds that might heal, but scars will forever remain. It is a sad situation for all football fans and people in general.

Coach Joe Paterno was fired late Wednesday night for his role in the child molestation scandal involving former defensive coach Jerry Sandusky. Paterno had been under considerable fire the last few days for what many felt was his moral obligation to do more when he first learned of the allegations in 2002.

As a result, the career of one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game is over, and one of the proudest football programs in NCAA history will be looking for a new coach for the first time in 46 years.

The list of coaches who will apply for this position, and the list of coaches who will be contacted by the university, will certainly make for a diverse list.

Most assuredly, the program will clean house and no current coach on the Penn State staff will be considered—and, in all likelihood, will not be retained, either.

Here is a list of potential candidates to replace Paterno. One portion of the list is of coaches who have a legitimate shot of interviewing for the job; the other list is of coaches who would be a great fit, but realistically are not going to be the next head coach at Penn State.

Legitimate Candidates: Pat Fitzgerald

I am not 100 percent convinced that Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald would consider leaving the Wildcats for the Penn State Nittany Lions.

However, we are seeing this trend more and more in college football.

This past season, former Georgia Bulldog Will Muschamp took the head coaching job at Florida. Derek Dooley attended law school at Georgia, where his father was a legendary coach. However, he is now at Tennessee.

If Fitzgerald was to leave the Wildcats, it would not be because he is not loyal to his school, but it is because he is more loyal to his family. Fitzgerald is grossly underpaid at $750,000 a year.

Fitzgerald has done more with less than any other coach in the nation—even Chris Peterson. Win or lose, coaches know when they face a Fitzgerald coached team, they are in for a fight.

If Fitzgerald can win seven to nine games consistently at Northwestern, how high would his ceiling be in Happy Valley? He is a top 10 coach nationally and deserves to be at a school that is going to invest the resources needed to be a national contender.

There comes a time that a coach must do what is best for his family and his future.

Legitimate Candidates: Chris Petersen

Chris Petersen is the top young coach in the nation, and it is not even close.

He has a career record of 69-5, which includes a 2-0 bowl record in BCS games, and Boise State looks headed for their third top five final ranking in just six years. To put that into perspective, Nick Saban has only had two teams that finished in the top five.

Petersen has a squeaky clean image off the field and is known as one of the greatest game-day coaches in all of college football. He has taken two and three star athletes and defeated much more talented BCS teams.

In my opinion, Penn State would be thrilled to be able to make this hire. However, would Petersen be willing to accept the job? He has it pretty comfortable in Boise, and the pressure is not near as great in Idaho as it is in the Big Ten.

However, there are several reasons to believe that he might be willing to make the leap. Penn State is one of the nation’s premier jobs. The opportunity to coach in front of 106,000 over 34,000 might be enticing. I also believe the initial pressure would be minimal because of the recent scandal and because fans are embracing change.

Petersen might also consider that the Big Ten is playing at a level that it would be easier to win immediately.  Both Michigan and Ohio State as currently down, so the door is wide open.

Penn State will have to come out strong with at least an offer of $3 million. The potential is worth the reward for Petersen. However, they will have to give him a sizable financial increase for him to forfeit the low pressure situation he currently has.

If Petersen is going to make a move, it is likely to be this offseason. Once he starts breaking a new quarterback in, he is liable to stay for a while.

Legitimate Candidates: Dan Mullen

Dan Mullen played college football just 150 miles away from Penn State in Collegeville, PA at Ursinus College.

He might coach in the SEC, but the majority of his coaching experience has been up north. 

Mullen is considered one of the nation’s premier offensive minds in college football. He was the offensive coordinator during the Florida Gators last two national championships. Since his departure, the Florida offense has been abysmal. 

Mullen’s career record of 19-15 might not seem impressive on the surface, but it does not tell the whole story. In Mullen’s second season as head coach, they finished with a record of 9-4. 

The three seasons before he became head coach, the Bulldogs won nine games combined. 

Mullen has not proven to be a great recruiter yet. However, when you are at Mississippi State and have below average facilities by conference standards, it is hard to recruit versus Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Georgia, Tennessee and Florida.

Mullen currently makes $2.5 million a season. If Penn State matches those numbers, he is likely on his way to Penn State.

He has done well at Mississippi State, but he has probably taken the program as far as they will go with the resources at his disposal compared to the other SEC teams. 

Legitimate Candidates: Al Golden

Normally, I would never consider adding someone to a list that has been at their current school less than a year.

Willingness to leave that swiftly would show a lack of character—something Penn State cannot afford to have right now.

However, this is not your typical situation. Al Golden had no idea of what he was inheriting when he accepted the job at the University of Miami. Since that time, Miami has been exposed with major violations, and further sanctions could be waiting.

Golden thought he was purchasing a Porsche only to have the engine fall out the moment he cranked it.

Golden played tight end for Penn State from 1987-91 and served as a team captain his senior season. In 2000, he returned to Penn State as the linebacker coach. However, his tenure back was short, as he was hired as the defensive coordinator the following season for the University of Virgina.

Golden would remain with Virginia five seasons before being hired as the head coach of Temple. During his five seasons at Temple, he fielded two of their top teams in school history.

Will Golden be willing to leave after one season? I am not sure. I certainly couldn’t blame him. Penn State is his Alma Mater, and their very well might be even tougher sanctions in the near future for the Hurricanes. 

Legitimate Candidate: Urban Meyer

You are unlikely to find a Joe Paterno replacement list without Meyer’s name on it. Meyer would be a great fit for the Big Ten and could fit in to the culture of the Nittany Lions.

Meyer respects the Penn State football program and gushed about Coach Peterno during his final bowl game against Penn State. He stated, "I got into coaching 25 years ago because of guys like Paterno." 

Meyer won two national championships at the University of Florida and had another undefeated season and BCS victory at Utah.

He is currently serving in television, but according to a Scout.com report, was contacted in September to see if he would be interested in the job. This report alleges that Meyer would love to take over at Penn State, but would not want to be the one who pushed Joe Pa out the door.

However, that now would not be the case. Meyer would be viewed as a savior of the Nittany Lions and not the man who pushed out a legend.

There is enough talent on campus that Meyer could win games immediately and have Penn State back in the national picture within three seasons.  When you hire a coach for Penn State University, you run the risk of getting a coach who will be in over his head.

Wish List: Mark Richt

After this incident, Penn State needs a coach with the reputation of a clean image. Who better than Mark Richt of the University of Georgia?

He is in his 11th season as head coach of the Bulldogs and is renowned for his character and high standards.

Richt would be a win-win for the Nittany Lions. He would instantly renew the public image of the coaching staff and is also a darn good coach. At the time of this article, he has a career record of 103-36 despite playing in the nation’s premier conference.

Richt has won seven of Georgia’s 10 bowl games. He also is 2-1 in the SEC championship game. If the Bulldogs win the SEC Eastern Division this week, it will be the fifth time that he has won at least a share of the division crown in 11 seasons.

I think Penn State would be honored to have Richt as their coach. However, I don’t think he will  leave UGA under any circumstances. 

Wish List: Nick Saban

The Penn State Nittany Lions are currently ranked No. 12 in the BCS rankings.

However, the Nittany Lions are far from being a national contender and do not even resemble the on-field product that is the Penn State brand.

However, Nick Saban could have them back in the national picture within three seasons, if not less.  Saban has become known as the master revitalizer. He is able to take proud football programs that are down and out and turn them into football machines.

The job he has done at Alabama is nothing short of astonishing. When he arrived in Tuscaloosa, Alabama was a mid-tier team in the SEC. However, they won a national championship in his third season, and they have been the preseason No.1 team in back-to-back years.

The Saban to Penn State rumor has been surfacing for the last two years. But realistically, it is not going to happen.

Had Paterno left three years from now, it would have been more likely. At this juncture, Saban is staying put.

Wish List: Garry Patterson

Garry Patterson could very well be the best coach in college football; nine different organizations have named him National Coach of the Year at some point during his career.

Patterson has a career coaching record of 105-30, and he has won five of the last six bowl games that he has coached in. Despite being a non-BCS school, the Horned Frogs have finished in the top 10 four of the last six seasons.

Patterson is a coach that cares deeply for his players, but also has a firm hand of discipline. In my opinion, he is one of the few coaches who could win games at any college in America. His teams play smart, play hard and are very fundamental.

Patterson, like the others on this wish list, is unlikely to leave Texas Christian any time soon. Now that they are a member of a BCS conference, much of the lure for him to leave is gone.

Patterson also makes three million dollars per season. Moreover, I cannot see Penn State breaking the bank to get him like Alabama did with Saban. It would be a perfect fit, but it is not going to happen. 

Wish List: Jon Gruden

If Penn State could lure Jon Gruden to become their next head coach, they will never have a shortage of talent.

Gruden would instantly become the nation’s premier recruiter. No, he does not have the proven college track record that other coaches might have. However, most young five-stars think more about the NFL than they do bowl games.

Could you imagine Gruden sitting down with the nation’s top rated running back and relaying to their family how hard he will work to get their son into the NFL? As the light reflects off of his Super Bowl ring, he promises to exhaust every resource and connection he has to make this become a reality.

There are some critics who do not think that Gruden is an elite coach. However, no one in the nation could out-recruit him or assemble a better staff.

The problem is that Gruden has a cushy TV deal and could get an NFL job when they open. Is there anything to draw him to the college game? I am not convinced that there is.

Wish List: Mike Leach

Mike Leach is a great football coach and a strong disciplinarian; some would say too much so.

Unfortunately, Leach will be bypassed in this search because of the incident that transpired at Texas Tech. 

Penn State is looking for a coach with as little baggage as possible, and Leach does not meet that requirement. It is unfortunate because it would be great to see Leach's offense coupled with a legit defense.

Every where Leach has gone, his offense has worked. It has dominated in the Big XII with Oklahoma and Texas Tech. His offense has also torched the SEC. During his time in Kentucky as offensive coordinator, his offense broke four NCAA records, 42 SEC records and 116 school records.

Leach will son get his shot at coaching again, but it is likely to be somewhere else than Penn State.