It seems as though the search for Penn State’s next offensive coordinator has come to an end. While no official statement has come from Penn State just yet, it is being widely reported that Penn State has hired Kansas offensive coordinator [autotag]Andy Kotelnicki[/autotag] to fill the vacancy on Penn State’s coaching staff for the same position.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic was among the first to report the news, via X (formerly known as Twitter). His initial report was confirmed by a couple of other reputable reporters, including Adam Rittenberg of ESPN and Brett McMurphy of The Action Network. It was reported earlier this week James Franklin had a meeting with Kotelnicki, who is considered a hot name in the coaching carousel at this moment. It is also reported that Kotelnicki has a desire to one day be a head coach, and it is worth noting Franklin has had three coordinators in recent years go on to become a head coach (Joe Moorhead, Ricky Rahne, and Brent Pry).
SOURCE: Kansas offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki is expected to become the next OC at Penn State.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) November 30, 2023
Source confirms Penn State is hiring Kansas OC Andy Kotelnicki as offensive coordinator, replacing Mike Yurcich. @BruceFeldmanCFB first reported.
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) November 30, 2023
Kansas OC Andy Kotelnicki will be Penn State's OC, source told @ActionNetworkHQ. 1st reported by @BruceFeldmanCFB. Kansas has since promoted QB coach Jim Zebrowski to co-Offensive Coordinator & DB coach Jordan Peterson to co-Defensive Coordinator
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) November 30, 2023
Kotelnicki has been a key member of the coaching staff led by Kansas head coach Lance Leipold since Leipold’s time with Division 3 powerhouse Wisconsin-Whitewater. Leipold hired Kotelnick to be his offensive coordinator at Wisconsin-Whitewater in 2013, after Kotelnicki spent two seasons with Division 2 University of Mary. Kotelnicki followed Leipold to Buffalo in 2015 and continued to serve in the role of offensive coordinator for six seasons with the Bulls. When Leipold left Buffalo to take the Kansas coaching job, Kotelnicki followed him to Lawrence.
Kotelnicki has helped transform the entire offensive identity at Kansas. Kansas had the nation’s 126th-ranked total offense out of 127 in the FBS during the 2020 season and the 90th-ranked total offense in 2019, the last season before the pandemic impacted the 2020 season. With Kotelnicki running the offense, Kansas has seen its total offensive rank jump from 114th in 2021 up to 29th this season.
For the sake of comparison, Penn State’s total offensive ranks were 82nd in 2020, 34th in 2021 (2 behind Kansas), and 62nd this season.
Kotelnicki will replace [autotag]Mike Yurcich[/autotag], who was let go a day after Penn State lost at home to Michigan late in the regular season. [autotag]Ja’Juan Seider[/autotag] and [autotag]Ty Howle[/autotag] have split the playcalling duties on offense in the last two games of the season, and it may be safe to expect both to continue calling the offensive plays for Penn State’s upcoming bowl game, with Kotelnicki likely to run the Jayhawks offense for their bowl game. But those details remain unconfirmed and are just speculation at this stage.
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