Former Pitt Player To Become Penn State Coach: Reports

PITTSBURGH, PA —A former University of Pittsburgh player is in line to become the next Penn State coach, according to multiple reports.

Penn State reportedly was in final negotiations Friday with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell to become the Nittany Lions' new leader. Campbell would be the replacement for James Franklin, who was fired nearly two months ago and now is the head coach of Virginia Tech.

Campbell, 46, attended Pitt on an athletic scholarship in 1998 before transferring to the University of Mount Union, where he spent three years as a defensive lineman.

Campbell previously was the head coach at Toledo University before taking the Iowa State job in 2015.

Over the past 10 seasons, Campbell has a 72-55 record at Iowa State and has gone 50-40 in conference play. In the previous three seasons before his arrival, the team had an 8-28 record.

Hiring Campbell would end an excruciating period for Penn State, which has been without a coach since Franklin was fired on Oct. 12. The university reportedly pursued Nebraska's Matt Rhule, Alabama's Kalen DeBoer, Louisville's Jeff Brohm, Missouri's Eli Drinkwitz and Brigham Young's Kalani Sitake,, but was unable to finalize a deal with any of them.