How Penn State's James Franklin Hired Tom Allen as Defensive Coordinator

After a whirlwind interview process with Manny Diaz in 2021, Franklin adjusted his approach with Allen.

Penn State Nittany Lions defensive coordinator Tom Allen gestures during a warmup prior to the Blue White spring game at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Considering the constantly accelerating timeline of college football, Penn State coach James Franklin took a lifetime to hire Tom Allen as his defensive coordinator. The interview went on for nearly a week, extending from one day to another as Franklin navigated a haywire December schedule. The two coaches interviewed each other gradually, in fact, eschewing the warp-speed process of most coaching hires — including the one Franklin used to hire Manny Diaz in 2021.

"I think that put him in a position where he was very comfortable and put us in a position where we were comfortable as well," Franklin said. "It allowed me to feel comfortable with what I was signing up for and who I was signing up for. I think it also allowed him to feel comfortable with those things."

Nearly six months into their partnership, Franklin and Allen have made it work so far. Allen has set a new tone in Penn State's defensive room, one to which the players and coaches have responded. The first true test arrives in August, when the Nittany Lions visit West Virginia for the season opener. That's when Allen debuts his new-look defense, one that seeks to continue the success Diaz had over the past two seasons.

Penn State fielded one of the nation's top statistical defenses in 2023, one that allowed fewer yards per game than any team since Alabama in 2021. And the two-year relationship between Franklin and Diaz began in a rush. One day after Miami fired Diaz as head coach in December 2021, Franklin made his first call. They first spoke on Tuesday, agreed to terms on Thursday and met each other in State College on Friday.

"This past month has been a hell of a year," Diaz said in December 2021. "... That was quite an extraordinary turn of events."

Allen, meanwhile, had more breathing room after Indiana made the decision to part ways in late November. So he and Franklin put together a more methodical interview timeline.

"I think that's a big part of our interview process," Franklin said. "We try not to leave any stone unturned. We try to talk about everything. Just like we try to do in the recruiting process, we don't sell people on a dream or a vision. We talk through the reality of where we are and what we
need to do.

"Tom's interview was a little bit interesting because it went for like a week, literally. He came here, had a couple hours to spend with him. We weren't able to get all the stuff done in between recruiting and bowl prep, all the things we needed to do. It became, 'Can you stay for another day, talk for a couple more hours, have it early in the morning, late at night?' He did it. He still felt like he had questions he had and I had questions that I had. Kind of went another day, another day, another day, another day."

Ultimately, after interviewing "a ton of high-profile" coordinators and head coaches, Franklin said he got what he was looking for in Allen.

"We've had a long tradition of great [defense] at Penn State for a long time, going back probably the last 60, 70 years, maybe even longer than that," Franklin said. "We've been fortunate, [former defensive coordinator] Bob Shoop had a top-10 defense. Brent Pry had a top-10 defense statistically. Then obviously Manny had a top-10 defense. We've been fortunate there. I think part of that is it's a little bit of Penn State's DNA. I think we've done a really good job of continuing to kind of build on
that. Feel great about that.

"The important thing was who can we hire to continue that tradition and also has similar philosophies to what the roster has already been built on rather than starting all over again."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich.