The Penn State Nittany Lions are in the midst of starting a new era after James Franklin was fired just 6 games into the season. After a lengthy coaching search where it appeared that the Nittany Lions whiffed on several of their top candidates, they ended up in a great place, landing Iowa State’s Matt Campbell.
As Penn State looks to quickly get back to competing for Big Ten Championships and College Football Playoff appearances, Matt Campbell has some heavy lifting to do. Before the Transfer Portal opens at the start of January, Matt Campbell needs to build out his staff. One of the biggest roles that remains unfilled for Penn State is defensive coordinator, but it appears Campbell has a splash hire in mind.
Penn State landing D’Anton Lynn would cripple Lincoln Riley
On Wednesday, USC fans were concerned when it was reported that D’Anton Lynn would no longer speak to the media after being scheduled to do so. Wednesday Night quickly revealed why as it was reported that D’Anton Lynn was the target for Penn State’s defensive coordinator role.
USC’s D’Anton Lynn is the target for the Penn State defensive coordinator job, sources tell @CBSSports.The ex-Penn State DB has improved SC from 121st nationally in scoring defense two years ago to now allowing 12 fewer points per game. Before USC, led a top 15 defense at UCLA. pic.twitter.com/vkLnzqvodx
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 18, 2025
D’Anton Lynn played for the Penn State Nittany Lions for 4 seasons under Joe Paterno, earning All-Big Ten honorable mentions 3 times…