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Jim Knowles (DC Penn St.)

Ohio State very clearly wanted it look like they did everything they could to retain Knowles, which I’m sure they did, based on the comments that they made him an offer that would make him the highest paid DC in the nation. I wish they would have just said “we wanted a DC that wasn’t a dead snail on the recruiting trail.”
I'm not so sure. I think we would have liked to keep him unless there was just some internal tension that could not be resolved (which I think seems likely btw). Just on the recruiting end, we brought Knowles in just to coach knowing a bunch of other coaches would have to pick up the slack recruiting (JL, Walton, Guierri, and somewhat LJ Sr). Much of that is true with Kelly as OC and being bolstered by Day, Hartline, etc.

All that being said, if PSU does not plan for the same model and wants Knowles to recruit actively, they are in for a rough go at it. It seems PSU fans expect him to be an ace recruiter, but if their administration relies on that...good luck.
 
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Whatever the heck happened behind the scenes bing what it is, I’m sure won’t be missed. The on-field results of whatever the heck happened behind the scenes I’m sure will be missed.

If the stories are true, and I suspect many are because we’ve been getting trickles of this for a while, the drama is disappointing. For Day, I hope that is a learning opportunity where the lesson was learned.
 
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Whatever the heck happened behind the scenes bing what it is, I’m sure won’t be missed. The on-field results of whatever the heck happened behind the scenes I’m sure will be missed.

If the stories are true, and I suspect many are because we’ve been getting trickles of this for a while, the drama is disappointing. For Day, I hope that is a learning opportunity where the lesson was learned.
Day is a stone-cold killer and will fire or ream anyone who needs it.

It worked so no complaints here.
 
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The offense was not without it's own faults against Oregon. They had a couple absolutely awful turnovers that made no sense.

That said, while I was a supporter of Knowles, disagreed with the talk of him being fired and saw the improvement in the defense; this run, or any for that matter, doesn't insulate any coach from proper criticism.

Day has been worthy of the critique he has received in the past. Not only from fans and media, but per words from his own players with their heart-to-heart meeting, them as well. The challenge to continue self improvement, nuance and in-house scouting. Likewise, Day is incredibly worthy of the praise he is receiving for the turnaround and championship run.

The man achieved less at times with even more talented squads.

This is no different for Knowles. He was worthy of praise at times, and he was of critique. I even noted in the first Oregon game how his predictable calls of heavy alignment at chain depth put his DBs in bad positions against a mobile QB when the Dline wasn't getting home. Knowles was far too rigid and he was rightfully called out. Much like Day in certain game (hello, last November)

Success does not insulate one from the challenge of continuous improvement that critique, proper critique, can highlight.

Coaching is being adaptable. In the immortal words of Bruce Lee - "Be water, my friend".
 
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Adding an outsider opinion:

1). Anything that happened in the Locker Room or in Coaches meetings doesn't really move the needle here. Clearly it generated the appropriate on-field results but I'm not sure it's the bigger issue.

2). I'm not certain why PSU would do this? Other than to potentially wound a conference rival?
Was anybody disappointed in Penn States defense over the past 2-3 years? Did they massively under develop talent? All I see are NFL teams running to the podium to draft these dudes and for good reason. I'm not certain this was ever a deficiency in the PSU program.

3). Defense is a lot more based on the Jimmy's and Joes than X's and O's
Unless PSU has a haul of dudes coming in, I don't know if this pays off in the short term. As others have mentioned, it's not like he's there for recruiting purposes.
 
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I know it's the offseason now and anything news worthy gets beat to death but who gives a shit? He's gone.

I think it's perplexing why a guy that seemed to have everything he needed would jump ship. Did PSU offer more money? Maybe, but would tOSU have matched any offer if they wanted him to stay? I'm sure they would have so why did he want to leave or why did Day want him to go? Didn't he just sign an extension last year? It seems like there would have to be a buyout for him to make a lateral move. Maybe he watched Joel Klatt's way too early 2025 rankings and thinks he can bump his stock if he's the DC for 2 different CFP winning teams in back-to-back years. Maybe he thinks he's more elite than Franklin so when they fall short again next year he can take over. What does his wife look like? Is he even Franklin material? So many questions, not enough answers.
 
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