Penn State should take ‘biggest swing’ on Nick Saban: Joel Klatt

Don’t expect Nick Saban to return to coaching college football anytime soon, but that shouldn’t stop Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft from reaching out to the legendary former Alabama coach about the vacant job with the Nittany Lions, football analyst Joel Klatt believes. 

Penn State is in need of a new head football coach after it fired James Franklin following a third straight loss last weekend, with the season taking a major downward turn. 

Klatt, appearing on “The Heard with Colin Cowherd” on Wednesday, admitted it was a long shot, but said that Kraft should take “start with the biggest swing possible” in the coaching search. 

“Well, I think that Pat Kraft, the athletic director at Penn State, is going to take a big swing,” Klatt said. “I don’t think that anybody is off of his list, to be quite honest with you. And if I was Pat Kraft, I would start with the biggest swing possible. I know this sounds crazy, but I think the first call I would make is Nick Saban. Just make sure that that’s not going to happen.”

Saban has constantly shot down rumors of a potential return, and during a “Fox & Friends” interview in July, the former Crimson Tide coach said there was “no opportunity” that would “entice me” to return to coaching. 

In his post-coaching career, Saban has found a home on ESPN as a college football analyst and is an adviser for Alabama. 

For now, Terry Smith is serving as the interim head coach for the Nittany Lions, and whoever is hired to be the permanent replacement for Franklin will have some lofty objectives to achieve. 

Kraft told reporters after the firing that the school is eyeing someone who can “maximize elite-level resources, attack the transfer portal and develop at the highest level.”