‘We could really get Jim?’: Jim Knowles, Anthony Poindexter and Penn State’s sizzling start to the offseason

Final offseason, Ohio State made key switch portal acquisitions, paid large to retain its greatest gamers and spent tens of millions on a splashy coordinator rent.

This offseason, it’s Penn State’s flip.

Within the newest offseason transfer, Penn State employed away Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to make him the highest-paid coordinator in school soccer historical past — a assured three-year contract value greater than $9 million that resets the marketplace for school assistants. Knowles’ rent follows the retention of prime expertise as the varsity makes use of revenue-sharing funds to lure its greatest gamers away from the NFL, together with quarterback Drew Allar, working backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, defensive finish Dani Dennis-Sutton, defensive deal with Zane Durant and security Zakee Wheatley.

However there’s extra acquisition information in Joyful Valley: Anthony Poindexter, this system’s co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach, is anticipated to stay on workers by signing a brand new multi-year contract with an elevated wage — a deal that’s resulted in him turning down curiosity from energy convention faculties of their coordinator openings, sources inform Yahoo Sports activities.

In actual fact, behind Knowles’ transfer from Columbus to State School — one of the vital gorgeous coordinator swings in current business historical past — is Poindexter, the 48-year-old former Virginia defensive again who received a Tremendous Bowl as a participant with the Baltimore Ravens and has helped steer one of many nation’s greatest defensive models since becoming a member of James Franklin’s workers in 2021.

Poindexter was in line for a promotion to the full-time coordinator place to switch Tom Allen, who left for Clemson earlier this month. Nonetheless, Knowles’ curiosity within the place altered the course of the rent, these with information of the search informed Yahoo Sports activities.

Franklin and Poindexter held a dialog earlier this previous week when it grew to become obvious that Penn State had a chance to rent Knowles. “We might actually get Jim?” he informed Franklin.

Poindexter even mentioned the job with Knowles over the previous few days, committing to remaining on workers if Knowles have been employed to run the protection.

Ohio State’s supply to Knowles would have made him the highest-paid coordinator in soccer — at the very least $2.6 million a 12 months in wage. Penn State went above it, providing a historic determine for any assistant coach of greater than $3 million a 12 months in a transfer that aligns with this system’s messaging earlier this fall associated to its assets within the impending revenue-sharing world of faculty sports activities.

Throughout an interview in November, Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft acknowledged that, on this murky NIL period, Ohio State and others had a “leg up.” However, he mentioned, within the impending period of direct compensation, Penn State will go “toe to toe with them.”

“I feel it’s our time,” Kraft informed Yahoo Sports activities then.

Lower than three months later, the Nittany Lions are on tempo for an offseason harking back to the one the Buckeyes had final 12 months, when head coach Ryan Day stored round his plethora of expertise, plucked stars like Caleb Downs and Quinshon Judkins from SEC applications and employed then-UCLA head coach Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator.

The end result was an Ohio State nationwide championship in one of the vital unimaginable postseason runs in school soccer historical past.