James Franklin and Penn State capped off their season close to a Natty dream. They gave it up 27-24 against an organized Notre Dame and watched the Irish fall flat against Ohio State in the final. But it’s not the time for the Nittany Lions to sit back and take a chill pill at the Irish’s brutal heartbreak. They are off to a too serious pursuit to have that immature relish. As Tom Allen ditched a hefty $1.5 million to leave the building after one season with the team, Franklin has been on a hunt for their new defensive coordinator for the second time in two years.

It begs the most obvious question: who all are on the list? Well, you can un-mark one highly touted name swirling over the lore. No, we are not talking about USC’s D’Anton Lynn, who has been deadlocked by a high-flying contract extension by Lincoln Riley.

Penn State’s potential DC candidate seems to have a different plan

The best internal candidate on staff is one who has been long rumored to take a jump in his coaching career. Anthony Poindexter, the co-defensive coordinator and safety coach, seems to be a natural transition to the vacant DC post. Poindexter is largely regarded as a college football legend and Hall of Fame who produced some of the best safeties in his time with the Nittany Lions, such as Jaylen Reed, K.J. Winston, and Zakee Wheatley. He has been a top-tier asset in the Nittany Lions DC room since Banks left in 2021. Although he has only three years of experience serving solely as a defensive coordinator in Connecticut (from 2014 to 2016), his quality and minute familiarity with Penn State made him a perfect missing piece of the puzzle. He deserves the seat. But the problem is he deserves more.

”It looks like it is his job to lose. That’s my opinion because, technically, it is; if he doesn’t want the job, he doesn’t have to accept it, and I feel like it’s obvious, being that he’s the co-defensive coordinator and has been for the past four seasons. He’s seen it all with Manny Diaz and Tom Allen. He’s called plays before, he has everything that’s on his resume lined up perfectly for him to be promoted the full-time defensive Coordinator, but Dylan, we pointed this out, there was a rumor floating around that he doesn’t want the job,” said Penn State insider Zach Seyco.

But what is the tea? Why would he not want a lucrative promotion? Well, back in 2021, when Virgina was in search of its new HC, Poindexter was a popular candidate in the UVA community, especially among current and former Virginia football players and staff, as well as among UVA athletics donors. It wasn’t a fluke. He had an excellent on-field career at the University of Virginia. The No.3 jersey remained one of the best defensive backs in the franchise’s history.

But somehow, the talks didn’t work out. ‘

‘What if he does not want the job because he is waiting for that head coaching job to open up at his alma mater again at Virginia because he was so close to getting it the first time? Whatever the reason, it didn’t work out, so they went with Tony Elliott. Well hey, Virginia, you made the wrong choice, you should have gone with Anthony Poindexter,” Seyco added.

He poked fun the next moment, saying it was god’s grace that he made the wrong choice otherwise Penn State would have been penalized in terms of not having a quality co-DC. It could be a real possibility for Pondexter to look out for the lost opportunity and wait a bit, leaving PSU’s search in more jeopardy. Blame Tom Allen

for all the headaches. But why did he even choose to cut the ties?

Tom Allen had a personal reason to break Nittany Lions’ heart

Tom Allen wore a drowsy smile in Penn State’s locker room, coming fresh off the Orange Bowl as he meticulously observed a pale, doomed group of players whining over the Nittany Lions’ 27-24 loss to Notre Dame. Penn State’s defensive coordinator, at least for that moment, felt his Penn State tie into the left side of his chest.

“[They] were part of a special, special group. It’s easy to lose sight of that right now. No one wants to hear that right now [after the loss to Notre Dame]. There are a lot of hurting guys in this locker room, and rightly so. But I want them to be remembered as one of the best defenses in the country and one of the best defenses in Penn State history. They gave it all to the final whistle,” Allen said with a lot of struggle, adjusting his facial expressions.

But why did he pull the rug? Well, if you think it’s a pure money move, you don’t yet know the standout DC. He is a father first. He chose Clemson over Penn State solely to be in close proximity to his children.

His two daughters, Brittany and Hannah, live in South and North Carolina, respectively. Hannah is expecting her second baby in a few days. So, it would have been better for her to have er father around. Also, his son Thomas lives nearby and shifted to one place after Allen moved in. ”Family means a lot to me, and my wife has made some amazing sacrifices over the years for me to pursue the dream that I’ve put my heart in to coach football at this level,” the departing DC justified his heartbreaking decision.

It remains to be seen who will be the next in his shoes heading to the off-season.