Surprise NFL Coordinator Emerges At Top Candidate For Penn State Job After James Franklin Firing

The Penn State Nittany Lions stunned the college football world over the weekend when they fired head coach James Franklin on the back of a 13-win season.

For those who have been paying attention, however, the move had been a long time in the making. Franklin served 12 years as the Penn State head coach and, while he experienced success, seemingly faltered in every big moment.

In the wake of the firing, names such as Urban Meyer, Curt Cignetti, Eli Drinkwitz, and Penn State alum Matt Rhule have been tied to the job. But now a new name has emerged as the betting favorite, and it’s not one you may have expected.

Bill OC Joe Brady Emerges As Betting Favorite For Penn State Head Coaching Job

For a number of reasons, Rhule began the search as the prohibitive favorite to wind up at Penn State. He went to State College High School, walked on to the Penn State team, and previously worked with Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft while the two were at Temple.

However, Rhule’s hiring is far from a foregone conclusion, and another emerging coach with ties to the school has now moved to the top of the betting odds.

Joe Brady has passed Matt Rhule as the favorite to be Penn State’s next head coach, per BetOnline. He was a graduate assistant for the Nittany Lions from 2015-16 and is currently the offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills. pic.twitter.com/lF0oVUzBgO

— Joel Haas (@Joel_Haas1) October 14, 2025

Late Tuesday night, Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady became the betting favorite to become the next Penn State head coach, per BetOnline.

Not only is Brady one of the top young offensive minds in football, he also has significant ties to the program. Brady served as a graduate assistant at Penn State in both 2015 and 2016 and is now employed by Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula, a Penn State grad and one of the program’s biggest financial backers.

Those more familiar with Brady also know that he was the offensive coordinator for LSU’s historic undefeated season in 2019. The Tigers averaged 48.8 points per game that season, and Joe Burrow went on to win the Heisman Trophy.

It’s still fairly early in the search process, and Brady topping the odds doesn’t necessarily mean anything. But it’s certainly an interesting development, especially as some consider him a major candidate to be an NFL head coach in the near future as well.

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