New Penn State OC Andy Kotelnicki recently explained why he’d leave Kansas

The search for the next offensive coordinator for the Penn State football program has reached its conclusion. On Thursday afternoon, it was reported that Kansas OC Andy Kotelnicki would be the man that James Franklin and the Nittany Lions tapped to fill the position. Kotelnicki was highly successful at Kansas and had been with Jayhawks coach Lance Leipold for years, which begs the question: why would he leave Lawrence? In a recent interview, the new Penn State OC may have shed some light on where his head was at regarding that decision.

Penn State football hires Andy Kotelnicki as OC

It took nearly three weeks since Mike Yurcich was fired for the search for the next Nittany Lions OC to heat up. But once things got going, the news moved swiftly this week.

Penn State football coach James Franklin started to meet with potential candidates via Zoom last weekend following Friday’s 42-0 win over Michigan State. As the week progressed, the focus appeared to center on Kansas OC Andy Kotelnicki.

Franklin reportedly traveled to Lawrence early in the week to visit Kotelnicki in person. As the discussion around other candidates died down, it seemed to be a waiting game for if and when Kotelnicki would receive an offer from Franklin.

That waiting game ended Thursday afternoon, as it was reported that Kotelnicki was leaving Kansas and heading to Happy Valley to become the new Penn State OC.

New Penn State OC target discussed why he’d ever leave Kansas

As the search began to dial in around Andy Kotelnicki this week, a central question became, would he actually leave Kansas?

Kotelnicki has orchestrated a Jayhawks offense that has averaged over 30 points per game and 400 yards per game the last two seasons. Beyond that, he’s been with Kansas coach Lance Leipold at multiple destinations, including Buffalo and Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Moving on from his relationship with Leipold and the Kansas program was undoubtedly a difficult decision for Kotelnicki. But in an interview from earlier this month with The Topeka Capital-Journal, the new Penn State OC shed light on why he may one day leave Lawrence.

“We’re professionally very happy here, and personally very happy here, so it’s — you can be a little more selective,” Kotelnicki said of his situation at Kansas.

Given that Kotelnicki reportedly turned down a similar position with Oklahoma earlier this week, this quote speaks volumes to the opportunity that the Penn State football program presents.

The 2024 season is a long way away, but I’m sure plenty of that time will be spent envisioning what Drew Allar and the Nittany Lions offense will look like with Andy Kotelnicki at the helm.

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