UNIVERSITY PARK — In this new and far more hectic era of college football, there doesn’t seem to be anything that even nearly resembles what we used to call “the off-season.”
The headlines surrounding virtually every major football team in the country are filled with stories about players entering the portal, players transferring in, coaches leaving and coaches being hired, and Penn State is no exception.
In fact, the Nittany Lions may be among the most active in the country.
Since the team’s loss to Notre Dame in the national semifinals, one game away from the national championship, Penn State lost its defensive coordinator Tom Allen to Clemson, had eight players, including backup quarterback Beau Pribula and both top receivers transfer out and lost three underclassmen (and seven others) to the 2025 NFL draft, including possible first-rounders Abdul Carter and Tyler Warren.
So much for the minus column.
On the flip side, elite draft-eligible players such as Drew Allar, Nicholas Singleton, Kaytron Allen, Zane Durant, Zakee Wheatley and Dani Dennis-Sutton are coming back for their senior year.
There are six top-level FBS players transferring in, a 27-man incoming freshman class, and in what may be the biggest news of all, the Lions will have a new defensive coordinator in former Ohio State DC Jim Knowles.
Knowles just led the Buckeyes to a national title, and he will be returning home to Pennsylvania to take over the job vacated by Allen just after the season ended.
Knowles and Penn State reportedly finalized a three-year deal that will make Knowles one of the highest paid assistants in college football.
Knowles led one of the top defenses in the country last season at OSU, and the hopes are that he will bring some of that same magic to Penn State in 2025 and beyond.
It is a hire that will certainly bring a bit more spice to when Penn State and Ohio State play each other this season on Saturday, Nov. 1, in Columbus.
In 2024, the Buckeyes’ shut-down defense finished 1st in yards allowed nationwide, 1st in scoring defense, and 1st in red-zone defense.
Knowles hails from Philadelphia (Saint Joseph’s Prep) and played for and graduated from Cornell University.
He began his coaching career at Cornell in 1987, moved to Western Michigan, Ole Miss, back to Cornell as head coach from 2004 to 2009, then to Duke, Oklahoma State and finally arrived at Ohio State as its DC in 2022.
He will be the third Penn State defensive coordinator in three years following Manny Diaz and Tom Allen, who spent just one year in Happy Valley.
Besides the 27 incoming freshmen that include 14 ESPN 300 and 16 four-star players, there will be six incoming transfers from other FBS schools playing for the Lions next season.
Perhaps the best known of the transfers is Kyron Ware-Hudson from USC, who is considered to be an elite receiver and who will be joining a room depleted by the exit of two top players from last year.
Also coming in will be receiver Devonte Ross from Troy, DE Enai White from Texas A&M, OG TJ Shanahan from Texas A&M, DT Owen Wafle from Michigan, and S King Mack from Alabama.
The whirlwind will not be over now for the Lions with Junior Days, camps, recruiting, spring practice and the Blue-White game all coming up.
For those of you interested, the 2025 Blue-White game will take place in 86 days.