Former Penn State QB to face Nittany Lions as Big Ten assistant coach in 2024

There will be plenty of new faces in the Big Ten for the 2024 football season. But when Penn State football plays the UCLA Bruins on October 5, the Nittany Lions will be greeted by a familiar face across the Beaver Stadium sideline. On Wednesday, reports indicated that former Penn State QB Billy Fessler, now an aspiring assistant coach, will join Chip Kelly’s staff in Westwood.

Former Penn State QB Billy Fessler to join UCLA coaching staff

Billy Fessler saw limited action on the field during his time with the Penn State football program. Fessler was on the Nittany Lions’ roster from 2014 to 2017, primarily holding kicks in the latter half of his career.

But the former Penn State QB has experienced a rapid ascent since trading in his helmet for a headset. The Erie native spent 2018 as the RBs coach at Slippery Rock before joining the staff of former Penn State OC Joe Moorhead at Mississippi State as a graduate assistant in 2019.

Billy Fessler came back to the Big Ten in 2020, spending the next two seasons as a GA at Ohio State. He then reunited with Moorhead at Akron in 2022. Last season, Fessler was elevated to OC and QBs coach, where the Zips averaged 279 yards per game.

Now, Fessler seems poised for a second return to the Big Ten, this time in an on-field role. First reported by FootballScoop on Wednesday afternoon, Fessler is expected to be hired by Chip Kelly to coach the UCLA QBs in 2024. Ryan Gunderson, the Bruins’ QB coach for the last three seasons, was hired as the Oregon State OC in December.

Joe Moorhead protege Billy Fessler headed to UCLA sources share…. https://t.co/ifcorlDB9C

— FootballScoop (@FootballScoop) January 10, 2024

Now, the former Penn State QB will get to face his alma mater as one of the newest members of the Big Ten. Penn State football takes on UCLA on October 5. It is the Nittany Lions’ second Big Ten game of 2024, and the Bruins’ first conference road matchup as a new league member.

More familiar names on the Big Ten’s west coast

Billy Fessler is not the only former Nittany Lion Penn State football will face in 2024. In December, Lincoln Riley hired former Penn State standout D’Anton Lynn away from UCLA to serve as USC’s new DC. Lynn produced a top-20 unit in his only season leading the Bruins’ defense.

Penn State football travels out west to face Lynn and the Trojans on October 12, one week after facing Fessler and the Bruins in Happy Valley.

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