The Penn St. Nittany Lions continue to search for their next head coach after the sudden firing of Joe Paterno just a few months ago. While there have been numerous candidates linked to the open position in recent days, San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Roman continues to be one of the leading candidates, according to reports.
"I've spoken with Penn State, had some discussions with them about a month ago and found everybody involved on their end to be extremely intelligent, extremely focused on finding the best person they could under the unique circumstances there at Penn State," Roman said.
Roman said that the meeting was mutual and at the time, he was focused on preparing the gameplan for the 49ers.
And as for why Roman, who already runs an offense similar to many that are using in the Big 10, is interested in the Penn State job.
"It's about the individual opportunities, the people you're surrounding yourself with," Roman said. "And a job like Penn State is a lifetime job. That's a job if I were to become the head coach there, I'd wouldn't leave there.
"I'd be back East, setting up camp, I'd be at the (Jersey) Shore in the summer. And that would be my routine.That's a very unique opportunity at Penn State, so that's something I'd definitely consider strongly. But I love where I'm at right now."
There is no denying that Roman could restore Penn St. back to its glory days, although it will likely take a lot of time and effort. He already has a pretty sweet gig for himself in San Francisco and the Nittany Lions won't be the last team to call him about a job opening.
"Whatever seems the best fit, I'll lean in that direction," Roman said. "Jim Harbaugh had the same situation last year. Several colleges really wanted him as the head coach, including Stanford and some NFL teams. It will be something I would go to him on."
It'll be very interesting to see how this whole situation plays out, especially with the 49ers currently in the hunt for a Super Bowl. Will it become a distraction for the offense and coach Roman? Will coach Harbaugh give Roman his blessing to take the job, or will he do everything in his power to retain the offensive coordinator? There are more questions than answers at this point.
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