Praise pouring in for Penn State football after hiring Andy Kotelnicki

The news that many Penn State football fans have been waiting for finally broke this afternoon. James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are expected to hire Andy Kotelnicki as the next offensive coordinator at Penn State. The hire was made less than a week after the Nittany Lions played their last game of the 2023 regular season. Many popular personalities are excited and pleased with this hire. Including ESPN analysts Dan Orlovsky and Bill Connelly.

ESPN analysts react to Penn State football hiring Andy Kotelnicki

The 2023 season was a bit of a letdown, especially on the offensive side of the ball for the Penn State football team. Many thought it was Sean Clifford who held the Nittany Lions back over the past few years. But in reality, Mike Yurcich was the root cause of the issue that Penn State has faced over the past few seasons.

The team was exposed against Ohio State and Michigan this season which led to Mike Yurcich being fired the Sunday following the Michigan loss. Now, James Franklin has found his next offensive mastermind in Andy Kotelnicki.

Once the hire was made public, the national media reacted to the hire. Dan Orlovsky called Kotelnicki “super creative” in his social media reaction.

This is a fantastic hire for @PennStateFball at OC to get Andy Kotelnicki

Super creative + open box mindset play designer and play caller 👏👏

— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) November 30, 2023

This is evidence of that creativity. Andy Kotelnicki was responsible for leading the Kansas Jayhawks to an offense in 2023 that produced 33.6 points per game with over 2,600 passing yards and 2,500 rushing yards. He is creative and plays like this are worth making Penn State fans excited over.

One fun play/concept from #kufball's game against Texas Tech today: Andy Kotelnicki lining up OL Ar'maj Reed-Adams in the slot and putting him in motion to give him a running head start for this block. That’s 6-foot-5, 325 pounds starting with extra momentum. pic.twitter.com/b0yaumzlK4

— Kevin Flaherty (@KFlaherty247) November 12, 2023

ESPN analyst calls Kotelnicki a “Killer Hire”

Bill Connelly, who is a writer for ESPN, reacted to the news of Kotelnicki being hired by Penn State, calling it a “killer hire.”

Granted, I thought Yurcich was a killer hire too, so what do I know, but THIS IS A KILLER HIRE. https://t.co/vBERDseeDT

— Bill Connelly (@ESPN_BillC) November 30, 2023

We will see just how successful the offense can evolve, but this accomplishes the goal that James Franklin set out a few weeks ago. He wanted to have an offensive coordinator hired before the Nittany Lions played their bowl game for them to become familiar with the culture in Happy Valley.

With that taken care of, Penn State can now focus on using the transfer portal to bulk up its roster.

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