Andy Kotelnicki’s stock is continuing to soar in his first season as Penn State’s offensive coordinator.

The former Buffalo and Kansas play-caller has the Nittany Lions’ offense humming through 3 games. Penn State’s offense ranks 9th nationally in GameOnPaper’s schedule-adjusted EPA-per-play metric — up from 51st in 2022.

On Wednesday, ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg published a story highlighting numerous coaches from across the sport who could be in line for head coaching jobs this coming offseason. Unsurprisingly, Kotelnicki was mentioned prominently.

Here’s an excerpt from what Rittenberg wrote about Kotelnicki:

“Penn State, which struggled mightily to generate explosive plays last season, is fifth nationally in yards per play and seventh in yards per game, after setting a team total offense record with 718 yards Saturday against Kent State. “He’s going to be a hot name, with what he did at Buffalo and Kansas,” an industry source said. Kotelnicki is a Minnesota native who has spent the bulk of his career in the Midwest and could be an interesting fit for Big Ten, ACC or certain Big 12 jobs.”

Penn State hasaveraged more than 7.5 yards per play in each of its 3 games to start the 2024 season. Last year, the Nittany Lions hit that benchmark just once (vs. Michigan State) the entire season.

Quarterback Drew Allar has also thrived with Kotelnicki running the offense. Allar is averaging 12.6 yards per attempt in 2024, which is second nationally amongst qualified quarterbacks. Last year, Allar finished tied for 77th nationally in that category.

Kotelnick and the Nittany Lions will look to keep things moving in the right direction this weekend against Illinois.