Josh Heupel comments on rumored interest in Penn State coaching job
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Tennessee coach Josh Heupel confirmed Monday that he is not a candidate for the Penn State head coaching job.
Heupel’s name had been in the mix to replace James Franklin in recent days. Over the weekend, Heupel was among the favorites to land the gig on prediction markets like Kalshi.
However, Heupel told On3’s Chris Low on Monday that he will not be moving to Happy Valley. Instead, Heupel intends to embrace the high expectations that come with competing at Tennessee.
“I wouldn’t want low expectations,” Heupel said. “That’s part of why I want to be here. We’ll win big.”
Heupel has been at Tennessee since the start of the 2021 season. He’s consistently produced solid results in Knoxville, although the 2025 campaign was a slight step back as the Vols went just 8-4 during the regular season.
Under Heupel’s leadership, Tennessee has won 8 games in each of the last 4 seasons. The last coach in Knoxville to accomplish that feat was Phillip Fulmer.
Other reported candidates for the Penn State job include BYU head coach Kalani Sitake and former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
