{"id":82391,"date":"2025-11-11T16:00:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T21:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=82391"},"modified":"2025-11-11T15:27:47","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T20:27:47","slug":"penn-state-should-pick-up-the-phone-for-brian-daboll","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/11\/11\/penn-state-should-pick-up-the-phone-for-brian-daboll\/","title":{"rendered":"Penn State Should Pick Up the Phone for Brian Daboll"},"content":{"rendered":"
Penn State\u2019s coaching search has included plenty of familiar college names. But sometimes the right answer isn\u2019t in the carousel, it\u2019s in the league above it. Brian Daboll, recently dismissed by the New York Giants, is one call athletic director Pat Kraft<\/a> needs to make. His r\u00e9sum\u00e9, personality, and offensive mind check every box for what Penn State football needs next.<\/div>\n

Penn State Should Pick Up the Phone for Brian Daboll<\/h2>\n

A Proven Winner Suddenly on the Market<\/h3>\n
Daboll\u2019s time with the New York Giants ended this week after a 2\u20138 start. On paper, that record looks rough. But it hides what made him special. In 2022, he led a roster that most analysts considered the bottom five in talent to the playoffs and earned NFL Coach of the Year honors. Before that, he won five Super Bowls as an assistant with the Patriots, built the Buffalo Bills\u2019 high-powered attack, and won a national title at Alabama.<\/div>\n
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That r\u00e9sum\u00e9 alone should grab Penn State athletic director Kraft\u2019s attention. Daboll is a proven program builder. He brings structure, accountability, and an offense that would immediately raise the Nittany Lions\u2019 ceiling.<\/div>\n

Why His Offense Fits the Big Ten<\/h3>\n
Daboll\u2019s system isn\u2019t built on gimmicks or empty tempo. It is rooted in physical football with modern spacing. His play calling uses heavy personnel, motion, and layered RPOs that mirror the defensive structures he would face weekly in the Big Ten.<\/div>\n
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Against the league\u2019s best fronts, Penn State needs more than horizontal screens and trick plays. Daboll\u2019s approach attacks vertically off power runs. His offenses at Alabama and Buffalo married inside zone and gap schemes with play-action crossers, dagger concepts, and deep-over routes. Those designs punish safeties who cheat downhill, a habit common among Big Ten defenses that play with two-high looks and rely on gap fits to stop the run.<\/div>\n
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Daboll is a proven quarterback developer. At Alabama in 2017, Daboll called plays for a national championship team and helped develop Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa. Hurts\u2019 dual-threat precision and Tagovailoa\u2019s deep-ball efficiency became hallmarks of a balanced, pro-style system that forced defenses to defend the entire field. Those same principles \u2014 power run looks with vertical strike capability \u2014 are what Penn State desperately needs to compete with Ohio State, Michigan, and Oregon in the new Big Ten.<\/div>\n
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His work with Josh Allen turned raw athleticism into precision. The same teaching could unlock Ethan Grunkemeyer\u2019s potential, allowing him to operate on timing, play-action, and layered progressions instead of relying solely on checkdowns. In a conference where November football is won in the cold, Daboll\u2019s blend of toughness and calculated aggression would travel anywhere.<\/div>\n
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Photo Credit: Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

The Regional and Cultural Fit<\/h3>\n
Daboll understands the region. He grew up in Western New York and spent most of his career in the Northeast. He knows the weather, the work ethic, and the blue-collar mentality that defines Penn State football. His daughter attends Penn State, and he has spent time in Happy Valley, including pre-draft meetings with linebacker Abdul Carter. That familiarity matters. He would connect with local high school coaches and families across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. The recruiting base would trust him because he speaks their language. Not as a salesman, but as someone who has lived their life.<\/div>\n
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Kraft has said he wants a coach who can bring energy and authenticity. Daboll checks both boxes. He relates to players naturally, without gimmicks. In Buffalo, players described him as a mentor who treated them like professionals. That matters in college football\u2019s new world, where NIL, social media, and ego management define locker rooms as much as X\u2019s and O\u2019s.<\/div>\n

The NIL and Recruiting Edge<\/h3>\n
In today\u2019s game, recruits seek a clear path to the NFL and a coach who can help them manage their brand effectively. Daboll offers both. His name alone carries pro credibility. When he walks into a living room, parents know he has developed players who are now earning contracts on Sundays.<\/div>\n
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Penn State has already modernized its facilities and is investing more than $700 million in upgrades to Beaver Stadium. Pairing that with a coach who understands the professional model would help attract elite recruits and transfers. Daboll\u2019s NFL background gives him an NIL advantage because he can show players what professional development looks like on the field, in media, and in business.<\/div>\n

Why Kraft Should Make the Call<\/h3>\n
Penn State needs a reset after a decade defined by consistency but not contention. Daboll could provide both a new identity and credibility. He knows how to build a staff, command a locker room, and adapt his offense to personnel. Kraft doesn\u2019t need to chase nostalgia or settle for safe. He needs a builder who understands both leadership and offense equally. Daboll fits that mold. He\u2019s been part of champions at every level and has the personality to connect with players in today\u2019s game.<\/div>\n
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Daboll\u2019s deal with the Giants reportedly paid him around $5 million per year. That is well below what elite college programs now pay top head coaches. Penn State could easily surpass that number, offering not just a raise but greater control and stability. The chance to lead a blue-blood program with that level of investment might be more appealing than another NFL rebuild.<\/div>\n
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Penn State has nothing to lose by making the call. If Daboll wants to trade the grind of the NFL for a college job that offers family, legacy, and long-term control, Happy Valley could be the perfect fit.<\/div>\n
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Main Photo: Julian Leshay Guadalupe\/NorthJersey.com \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Penn State\u2019s coaching search has included plenty of familiar college names. But sometimes the right answer isn\u2019t in the carousel, it\u2019s in the league above it. Brian Daboll, recently dismissed by the New York Giants, is one call athletic director Pat Kraft needs to make. His r\u00e9sum\u00e9, personality, and offensive mind check every box for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5544,"featured_media":82411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"1","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,2,17,35610],"tags":[34396,35756,34708,613,1766,35757,3205],"class_list":["post-82391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bigten","category-featured","category-news","category-penn-state-nittany-lions","tag-abdul-carter","tag-brian-daboll","tag-ethan-grunkemeyer","tag-jalen-hurts","tag-josh-allen","tag-pat-craft","tag-tua-tagovailoa"],"modified_by":"Kate Pearson Halyburton, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5544"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82391"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82391\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82412,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82391\/revisions\/82412"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}