Ex-Cowboys star RB, Oklahoma coach linked to Penn State opening

Penn State football is in the early stages of its hunt for a new running backs coach, but James Franklin is already pulling a candidate with some serious name ID into the search. According to a report from On3’s Pete Nakos on Tuesday night, former Dallas Cowboys star and current Oklahoma running backs coach DeMarco Murray has emerged as a viable target for the Nittany Lions.

“In recent days, the former Oklahoma star and Dallas Cowboys RB has had multiple calls with Penn State to discuss the move,” Nakos wrote on X.

In recent days, the former Oklahoma star and Dallas Cowboys RB has had multiple calls with Penn State to discuss the move, sources tell @On3sports. https://t.co/rBxUTv6L0Q

— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos_) February 11, 2025

Murray returned to his alma mater, where he is the Sooners’ career leader in all-purpose yards and touchdowns, in 2020. In 2022, Oklahoma led the Big 12 and was ranked 10th nationally with 219 rushing yards per game. Last fall, the Sooners were 11th in the SEC and No. 76 nationally with 155 yards per contest.

The former No. 1 high school running back in the country is forging a reputation as a capable recruiter in his own right. However, Murray did suffer several institution-imposed penalties and a single-game suspension for the 2024 season opener for impermissible contact with 17 prospects over a 16-month period.

Murray got his start in coaching at Arizona in 2019. A third-round Draft pick, Murray rushed for 7,174 yards and 49 touchdowns over a seven-year career with the Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, and Tennessee Titans.

Former Temple head coach also “mix the mix” for Penn State gig

© Andy Lewis-Imagn Images

DeMarco Murray isn’t the only name to emerge for the Nittany Lions’ new opening.

Nakos also reports that recently fired Temple head coach Stan Drayton is also a candidate of interest. Drayton went a combined 9-25 in his tenure with the Owls.

Before arriving in Philadelphia, the Cleveland, Ohio, native coached running backs at Texas, where he mentored Longhorns star Bijan Robinson. He also has coaching experience at Ohio State, Florida, and Tennessee, as well as the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers.

Franklin: Timing of late hires is “problematic”

Of course, James Franklin is looking to replace long-time assistant Ja’Juan Seider, who left the program for a position at Notre Dame earlier this week. While expressing his belief that Penn State football has “arguably the most attractive running backs job in the country,” Franklin isn’t shying away from the challenges of filling an opening so late in the hiring cycle.

“The NFL hiring process has really changed schools like Penn State because what happens is you either lose a coach to the NFL very late in the process, and now you have to go hire someone who’s probably already signed a contract, which can become costly in terms of buyouts and things like that because it’s so late in the process and all the best guys are typically tied up at that point,” Franklin said on Tuesday. “Or, an NFL team hires somebody else, and then they take your guy to fill their spot.

“In the old days, people didn’t necessarily put buyouts in for NFL positions because you didn’t want to ever act like you were prohibiting or making it more difficult for people to move professionally in terms of upward mobility. But I think the timing of it now makes those things even more challenging.

“It is very detrimental to lose people in your organization this late in the process. So I think all those things need to be looked at and determined what’s fair for both sides. But it’s something that is very, very challenging. And again, the timing is problematic.”

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