Penn State’s worst offseason fear came to fruition.

After a day of negotiating, Tennessee reportedly stole the Lions’ coveted defensive coordinator.

According to Feldman, the two sides met yesterday in Tennessee and discussed the possibility of a move following the team’s firing of defensive coordinator John Jancek.

Footballscoop.com reported that the deal consisted of an $800,000 buyout for Shoop, and that was the biggest hurdle for Tennessee in negotiations.

According to Feldman, the deal is a reported three years. There’s been no release of the financial details of his new contract.

Shoop was rumored to be considering leaving Happy Valley last year for LSU. Ultimately, he stayed and signed a three-year extension that was worth nearly $1 million per season. In 2015, Shoop led a unit that finished second in the country in sacks and sixth in tackles for loss.

In the home stretch of recruiting season, the loss will be a tough pill for Penn State to swallow. The Lions already lost four-star defensive tackle Karamo Dioubate this week.

It remains to be seen how this will effect James Franklin’s 15th-ranked 2016 recruiting class. It also remains to be seen who will take over.

Whoever does will have some big shoes to fill.