James Franklin is expected to hire a former head coach to serve as Penn State’s new defensive coordinator. This time, that hiring will include a former head coach from within the B1G.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the Nittany Lions have targeted former Indiana head coach Tom Allen to serve as the next DC. A deal is reportedly being finalized and is expected to be complete in the coming days.

Allen most recently spent 8 seasons at Indiana, including 7 seasons as the head coach of the Hoosiers. He went 33-49 overall as a head coach with 2 winning seasons for the program.

Prior to serving as the head coach of the Hoosiers, Allen made his way through the coaching ranks as a DC at Indiana and South Florida, among others. He also served as the linebackers coach and special teams coordinator for Ole Miss from 2012-14 under Hugh Freeze.

Franklin has found recent success in hiring former head coaches to lead the defense, most recently hiring Manny Diaz following the 2021 season after Diaz was fired by Miami. The defense shined the past two seasons, and Diaz landed another head coaching opportunity at Duke following the end of the 2023 season.

Prior to Diaz, Brent Pry spent 6 seasons as Franklin’s DC before landing a head coaching opportunity at Virginia Tech. Pry led the Hokies to a bowl game this season with a 6-6 record.

We’ll see if Allen is able to turn a stint at Penn State into another head coaching opportunity, but it should be a solid hire for the Nittany Lions.