Rece Davis sees one potential “big swing” hire for Penn State flying under the radar

With a few top college football jobs open, ESPN’s Rece Davis believes Penn State could be positioned to make one of the biggest moves of the offseason. 

On the College GameDay Podcast, Davis said the Nittany Lions should consider “swinging for the fences” with their next head coach and one name stands out above the rest.

“These people are taking big swings. Everybody knows what Florida’s big swing is going to be, it appears, Davis said. "I would say, to your point, Elko and the Brink’s truck brought up, the big swing for Penn State would be to try to lure Mike Elko back home.”

Elko, who's in the midst of his second season as the Texas A&M’s Aggies head coach, has the team positioned for a potential College Football Playoff berth as SEC's highest-ranked program. They'll have to win out, including the conference championship to seal the deal. However, what Elko has done in the post-Jimbo Fisher era at College Station speaks volumes to his potential. 

Davis believes the New Jersey native, who began his coaching career at Stony Brook and coached throughout the Northeast in the 2000s should consider ending up back there, if an offer comes from Happy Valley. 

“This would be a massive swing,” Davis said. “But if you’re looking at it from the mindset of those who are looking for a new coach, I would think that a logical big swing without some of the downside of the other candidates at Penn State, a big swing would be, ‘Let’s go see if Elko says no.’”

But what incentives are there for Elko to jump from the SEC? Penn State isn't the same without James Franklin and needs to forge a new identity. Being able to pluck Elko from Texas A&M would be massive, but just doesn't make logical sense.

The Aggies have more resources at this point and is in the middle of a recruiting hotbed. Penn State is arguably the third-or-fourth best Big Ten team, which has nothing to do with who's leading the charge. This new era of college football has meant changes in a few regards and the traditional powerhouses are switching up.

For now, Elko remains focused on Texas A&M’s playoff chase with LSU next up on the schedule. We'll see if personal preferences will outweigh his future with the Aggies.

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