A very surprising name popped up in the Penn State head coaching search on Thursday, Nov. 20: Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer.

Jon Sauber of The Centre Daily Times, reported DeBoer is a leading candidate for the Nittany Lions, who fired longtime head coach James Franklin in the midst of a three-game losing streak. Franklin has since landed the Virginia Tech job and significantly reduced his buyout, paving the way for Penn State to take a big swing.

“He’s been one of Penn State’s top targets from the beginning,” Sauber said via Tide 100.9. “I think it was, early on, a little bit pie in the sky, of course, Alabama’s close game with South Carolina, there was a chance it could have picked up there. It didn’t, and then the loss to Oklahoma nudged the door open a little bit.

“I still th

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