Kalani Sitake Will Reportedly Stay at BYU Amid Penn State Interest

BYU’s head coach will remain in Provo, and Penn State’s search to replace James Franklin will continue. 

Kalani Sitake has informed people that he plans to remain as BYU’s head coach and will sign a “lucrative” contract to stay with the program, ESPN reported Tuesday. 

The BYU head coach had reportedly emerged as Penn State’s top target to become its next head coach, with rumors emerging on Monday that there was a strong possibility that Sitake would take the job. But Sitake’s decision to remain at BYU leaves Penn State still searching for its next head coach nearly two months after it fired Franklin. 

Sitake will also be the latest head coach to sign an extension with their current program amid rumored interest from Penn State. Indiana’s Curt Cignetti and Nebraska’s Matt Rhule were among the early speculated candidates to land the role, but both signed extensions with their current schools. 

James Madison’s Bob Chesney was also a rumored candidate for the Penn State job, but he agreed to a deal to become UCLA’s next head coach on Monday. 

Sitake has helped build BYU into one of the top programs in the nation over the last couple of seasons. The Cougars have gone 22-3 since the start of the 2024 season, posting an 11-1 record this season as BYU was ranked 11th in the most recent College Football Playoff poll. It’ll take on Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game on Saturday. 

BYU has also posted a winning season in nine of Sitake’s first 10 years at the helm in Provo. It went 11-1 in 2020 and 10-3 in 2021 when BYU was still an independent, positioning the Cougars to earn an invitation to join the Big 12 ahead of the 2023 season. Sitake holds an 83-44 record at BYU, which is his first stint as a head coach.

Sitake has spent the majority of his football career in Utah. He played football at BYU and has spent all but two seasons of his coaching career in the state of Utah. Prior to becoming BYU’s head coach in 2016, Sitake held assistant roles at Eastern Arizona, BYU, Utah and Oregon State. 

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