Joe Paterno Fired: The Top 10 Coaching Candidates to Take Over at Penn State

Joe Paterno’s coaching career, which has spanned 61 years and included a record 409 wins as a Division I head coach, has officially come to an end.

Last night, the Penn State board of trustees announced that Paterno’s time as coach of the Nittany Lions is over.

The announcement came after Paterno had come under fire in recent days after a sex abuse scandal involving former assistant Jerry Sandusky rocked the State College campus.

The firing, which was reportedly done over the phone, sparked riots by Penn State students.

Paterno, who has become the face of Penn State University and one of the most iconic figures in college football history, will now have his legacy forever tarnished by the fact that he failed to properly handle the Sandusky situation back when it was first brought to his attention.

Many thought that this would be the 84-year-old coach’s final season leading the Nittany Lions, but no one could have expected that Paterno’s career would end under these sad circumstances.

Defensive coordinator Tom Bradley will now step in as the interim head coach and lead the team for the remainder of the season.

With Paterno gone, the search to find his replacement will now begin.

It’s undoubtedly going to take a special type of leader to help this program and community recover from one of the worst scandals in sports history, and it will be fascinating to see who ultimately ends up becoming Paterno’s successor.

The speculation will soon begin, and dozens upon dozens of names are surely about to start swirling around and getting linked with the Penn State job.

We’ll have to see what kind of interest there will be to come coach a program that has a lot of healing to do over the next few years, but at this point, here’s a look at the 10 coaching candidates that I think the school should strongly consider.

Pat Fitzgerald

At just 36 years of age, Pat Fitzgerald has already established himself as one of the top young coaches in college football. Although Northwestern has suffered a few setbacks this season, you can't help but appreciate what Fitzgerald has been able to accomplish since taking over the Wildcats suddenly when his mentor Randy Walker died in 2006.

In his first five years in Evanston, Fitzgerald guided Northwestern to three winning seasons and three bowl games at one of the toughest schools to find success at in the Big Ten.

His youth, his ties to the conference and his leadership abilities will make him a desirable candidate for Penn State, but it remains to be seen if Fitzgerald would consider leaving his alma mater.

Greg Schiano

There was a short time frame when Greg Schiano was one of the most coveted coaches in college football, and he received heavy interest from both Miami and Michigan when those two schools had open coaching positions.

Schiano seems like he’s had Rutgers on the verge of a breakthrough campaign for the past five years, but the Scarlet Knights have just never been able to take that next step and win the Big East.

It might finally be time for Schiano to think about a new challenge.

Urban Meyer

Urban Meyer was not only one of the most successful college football coaches of the last decade, he was also one of the most respected.

Meyer compiled a record of 104-23 during coaching stops at Bowling Green, Utah and Florida, and he has four conference championships and two national championships on his résumé.

Meyer, who is likely to be the hottest college coaching candidate this offseason, has always displayed a strong value system and leadership ability, and he would be the type of coach who could come in and stabilize the Penn State program.

Before the scandal hit, there were unsubstantiated rumors that Meyer would be interested in succeeding Paterno at Penn State.

Because of his previous health issues, though, Meyer will have to decide if he’s up for the tough task of trying to help the Penn State program recover from this devastating scandal.

Al Golden

Because he played at Penn State in the late ‘80s, Miami’s Al Golden will be one of the hot names in the Penn State coaching search.

After rebuilding Temple, Golden went to Miami, where he unexpectedly was saddled with a huge scandal right before the start of his first season.

Even with the scandal and the numerous suspensions that followed, Golden has still managed to guide the Hurricanes to a 5-4 record so far this season.

Golden is only 42 years old, and he’s got the type of character and integrity that would make him a great fit at his alma mater.

Dave Doeren

If Penn State fails to land a flashy, big-name head coach, the school might try to find a young, up-and-coming coach from a second-tier school, like Dave Doeren.

Doeren, who is only in his first year at Northern Illinois, has led the Huskies to a 7-3 record this season, and the 39-year-old coach is one of the best young coaches in college football.

The former Wisconsin defensive coordinator has experience in the Big Ten, and he’s got the type of personality to succeed in the current situation that Penn State is facing.

Personally, if it were up to me to find Penn State's next coach, Dave Doeren is definitely a name that would be at the top of my list.

Tom Bradley

With Paterno out, defensive coordinator Tom Bradley will now serve as the interim head coach for the rest of the season, starting this Saturday against Nebraska.

Bradley takes over a team that is currently 8-1 and on top of the Big Ten Leaders division, and the coach has a shot to lead the Nittany Lions to the conference championship game if he can somehow find a way to motivate his distraught players.

The chances that Bradley becomes the next head coach in Happy Valley aren’t good. The school will likely want to cut ties with coaches from the Paterno regime and start anew. But if Bradley has success and somehow leads the team to the Rose Bowl, he may just do enough to earn the support of the fans.

In a strange twist of irony, Bradley is the coach who actually took over for Jerry Sandusky, the former assistant who is at the center of this whole scandal.

Chris Petersen

Chris Petersen has done a remarkable job of turning little Boise State into a nationally recognizable brand and elevating the Broncos into a consistent BCS contender.

Petersen has compiled an astonishing 69-5 record in his six years at Boise State, and he’s now solidified himself as one of the hottest head coaching candidates in college football.

While he has received a few overtures from BCS schools over the last few years, so far Petersen hasn’t given any indication that he plans on leaving the program that he’s built into a national power.

Kevin Sumlin

Kevin Sumlin has led Houston to a 9-0 record and a No. 11 national ranking this season, and if he can get the Cougars to a BCS bowl game, he will likely become one of the biggest coaching names in the non-AQ ranks.

Sumlin is a mirror image of Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, and he’s a man of principle and conviction who could come in and help restore credibility to the Penn State program.

The former Purdue linebacker has plenty of experience in the Big Ten conference, as he's made stops at both Minnesota and Purdue during his coaching career.

Dan Mullen

Dan Mullen is one of the brightest offensive minds in college football, and he was a big part of Urban Meyer’s success at both Utah and Florida.

Right now, Mullen is working as hard as he can to turn Mississippi State into an SEC contender, but it’s the type of uphill battle that’s going to take a few years.

Many felt Mullen would leave the Bulldogs for Florida this past offseason, but he seems committed to the job he’s been given, and it’s hard to tell if a school like Penn State could pry him away from Starkville.

Tim Beckman

Another MAC coach that Penn State could possibly look at is Toledo’s Tim Beckman.

Beckman has done a solid job in his three years at Toledo, and he led the Rockets to an 8-5 campaign and a bowl game in just his second season last year.

The former Oklahoma State defensive coordinator has experience in the Big Ten from the time he coached at Ohio State back in 2005 and 2006. While he may not be a flashy candidate, he could be the type of off-the-radar coach that Penn State needs at this time.

Names to Cross off the List

Any time there is a coaching search at a major football program, there are bound to be a ton of names floated out there. But here are a few coaches I just can't see coming to Penn State.

Kirk Ferentz is not leaving Iowa to come to Penn State just because he grew up in Pennsylvania.

Jon Gruden and Bill Cowher, two former coaches turned broadcasters, could have their pick of any NFL coaching vacancy they want this offseason, and it would make very little sense for either of them to enter the college ranks right now.

Kirby Smart and Gus Malzahn, two of the top assistant coaches in the country, are not leaving SEC country to come up north. Neither Smart nor Malzahn has the type of head-coaching experience to deal with everything that would be required of them at Penn State.