Penn State Coaching Favorite Addresses Growing Rumors

By Anne EricksonShareNewsweek is a Trust Project member

The Penn State Nittany Lions are still mulling several candidates to take over as head coach of their college football program, even as other teams have locked up their hires days or weeks ago.

Every time another school signs a new head coach, the Nittany Lions seemingly lose out on one of their options. Only a few key candidates remain, and one is speaking out about where he stands with Penn State.

Kalani Sitake is one of the names that is consistently popping up surrounding Penn State's coaching vacancy. The head coach at BYU surfaced as a candidate last weekend, and according to a report from 247Sports' Blair Angulo, BYU had an impromptu team meeting Monday to discuss it.

Sitake was hired to take over the BYU program in 2016. He's worked wonders with the Cougars, and now, the team is getting ready for a major game -- the Big 12 Championship Game against No. 5 Texas Tech, on Saturday with a trip to the College Football Playoff at stake.

Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions.

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On Monday, Sitake was asked directly about the idea of him going to Penn State. He didn't say anything specific about it, but he did address the growing rumors.

"I have to address it. The world is small now and people can see stuff on social media and everything," Sitake said, according to The Deseret News. "... So, yeah, I'll address it. But, also, they're used to me saying, 'Hey, (the coaching talk is) a good sign that things are going well for us.'

"But I will say that this isn't about me. What I've asked our team to do is to be focused on what we're trying to accomplish. There are marks of finishers, and that's what we're trying to do."

Sitake added that he and his team are "trying to finish the season the right way. It's on us to be our best to play against Texas Tech. So, as we go through this week and go through the prep, I also want them to live through all the moments and have a great experience and not waste a moment thinking about anything else."

Sitake also admitted that all of the Penn State talk is "a great distraction to have," but that his focus was firmly on "making sure that we're giving our best shot in this game against Texas Tech."

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