Penn State Players Find Quick Fit With Andy Kotelnicki

The new offensive coordinator made a strong first impression with the Nittany Lions.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. | The voice of Andy Kotelnicki, Penn State's new offensive coordinator, boomed through the speakers of the Beaver Stadium media room before he even sat down. “Hey, how are you? Happy to be here," said Kotelnicki, who spent the next 35 minutes introducing his style and energy to Penn State.

Kotelnicki told a long, winding story about childhood, when he’d bash his head into trees wearing a white helmet with a blue stripe. That, Kotelnicki said, turned him into a young Penn State fan. He compared his offense to a Dairy Queen Blizzard. He asked to meet Curtis Enis and LaVar Arrington.

Those were just a few examples of Kotelnicki’s octane, which Penn State football players already can sense. 

"He’s a great guy," said Penn State quarterback Drew Allar, who has had several one-on-one meetings with his new coordinator. "He's very energetic, and I think he's going to be great for our offense."

Kotelnicki said that one of his first orders of business was to meet with Allar, who he called a “high-capacity guy.” Kotelnicki seems comfortable with Allar for his capacity to process things on the field and lead an offense.

“He’s in, wants to sit in on meetings, wants to be involved with game-planning, wants to know the why of things,” Kotelnicki said. “He's the kind of guy who's a coach on the field and you can give plenty of responsibilities to and make sure you're in the right play. So my initial impressions of him are very impressive."

New Penn State OC Andy Kotelnicki, a Minnesota native, introduced himself today with a story about childhood, a football helmet, running into trees, and how all that made him a young Penn State football fan. pic.twitter.com/jyaHW7CPMX

— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) December 15, 2023

Kotelnicki brings with him a scheme that made Kansas the nation’s eighth-best rushing attack this season among FBS teams. Though running back Nicholas Singleton has yet to meet personally with Kotelnicki at Penn State, that early notes have impressed him. Singleton and fellow running back Kaytron Allen both have confirmed they’ll return to Penn State and not enter the transfer portal in 2024 in order to be coached by Kotelnicki. Singleton was particularly impressed with the run stats.

 "I saw a little bit of stats from what he did at Kansas running the ball. ... No. 8 [in the country] is crazy," Singleton said.

“Andy's been really good. He's a really good coach, but I feel like he's a really nice guy, too," Singleton added. "He brings a lot of energy into the meeting room every time the whole offense meets with him. He's been really good. I can't wait for him to actually coach.”

Singleton said that he sensed a "fun" side from Kotelnicki, who demonstrated that during his introductory press conference by comparing his offensive scheme to a Dairy Queen Blizzard. As Kotelnicki said, it’s a mixed-up, messy looking dessert but, at its core, is really just vanilla ice cream mixed with candy.

Then, giving his "elevator pitch" of his offensive scheme, Kotelnicki said he runs a “multiple, pro-style offense that uses spread concepts.” If you’re thinking that’s a lot of different things in one, that’s because it is. A hallmark of Kotelnicki’s offense is using his scheme to fit personnel rather than vice versa, which is something head James Franklin talked at length about after firing Mike Yurcich. For a deeper dive on Kotelnicki’s history, check out this story from when he was first hired.

"From talking to him, he adapts his offense to players," Allar said. "Obviously every team has a different collective of players, so maybe our offense won't look like what it looked like at Kansas, because he steered that offense to those players strengths. That will help us as a team because we’ll be able to play off our players strengths."

Tight end Tyler Warren is another fan of that aspect of Kotelnicki’s offense. Warren, who caught a team-leading seven touchdowns this year, has yet to announce his decision regarding the 2024 NFL Draft but will play in the Peach Bowl.

“I like him. I think he’s gonna be a good fit here. I think we’re excited to play for him,” Warren said. “He does a good job, if you look at what he’s done, of using the personnel, not necessarily having one system. He uses the players he has, and I think that would be a big thing for us going into next season.”

The defensive players understandably have not interacted with Kotelnicki a whole lot yet. But his unique offensive scheme will test that group throughout practice, including whoever ends up as the next defensive coordinator.

"I'm hearing great things about how he can coach the offense and just great accomplishments. I'm looking forward to it,” safety Kevin Winston Jr. said. “I look at it as a way for us, having a great offense with us, but the main thing for me is going at it in practice every day and making each other better. And I'm looking forward to what his offense presents to us and what we can do to get his offense better."

As for Kaytron Allen, the running back said Kotelnicki made a "great first impression" both in the building and on the sideline at practice. He also had a request of his new offensive coordinator.

"I hope he calls me Fatman," Allen said.

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Max Ralph is a Penn State senior studying Broadcast Journalism with minors in sports studies and Japanese. He previously covered Penn State football for two years with The Daily Collegian and has reported with the Associated Press and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Follow him on Twitter (X) @maxralph_ and Instagram @mralph_59.

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