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James Franklin discusses OC hiring, landing ‘proven playcaller’ in Kirk Ciarrocca
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Penn State has found its replacement for Ricky Rahne, luring Kirk Ciarrocca way from Minnesota to take over as offensive coordinator.
The Nittany Lions officially announced the hiring on Thursday. Penn State had been searching for a replacement to Rahne after the announcement that he was leaving to take over the head coaching vacancy at Old Dominion.
To replace Rahne, James Franklin reached into the B1G West and lured one of P.J. Fleck’s top assistants to Happy Valley. Ciarrocca had been with Fleck since his time at Western Michigan and is a big loss for the Gophers.
During his Cotton Bowl media day appearance, Franklin discussed the hiring of Ciarrocca. He indicated it was important to find someone who ran a similar system. However, he said it was also vital that Penn State find someone who is a proven playcaller and who wanted to be with the Nittany Lions.
Ciarrocca fit the bill on all accounts:
"I also believe in hiring somebody that wants to be here, and Kirk really wants to be here."
— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) December 26, 2019
https://twitter.com/audsnyder4/status/1210258435528413184?s=20
Ciarrocca inherits a young and supremely talented offense with the Nittany Lions. Hopefully, he is able to help lead the team back to the B1G Championship Game quickly.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.