Penn State Sports Magazine
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2 0 M A R C H 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M some people look at him like that, but when you look back at his history, he didn't really have to sell it. … They've been through some different coordi- nators, but they have always had good defense." The numbers back up that assertion. Under Allen last season, Penn State fin- ished in the top 10 of the FBS in total de- fense (seventh), rushing defense (ninth), red zone defense (fifth) and scoring defense (eighth). Under Manny Diaz in 2023, the Nittany Lions fielded the nation's No. 2 total defense, top rush- ing defense, and third-ranked scoring defense. Even the Lions' disappointing 7-6 campaign of 2021 was backed by the nation's No. 7-ranked scoring defense. The 2021 season was the last of Brent Pry's six years in the DC chair under Franklin. The Lions' continual success propelled him to the head coaching post at Virginia Tech, and Diaz followed Pry to the ACC, taking charge of Duke's pro- gram after his two-year tenure at Penn State. When Knowles looked at Penn State's continual success, the common thread he saw was a head coach who under- stands defensive football and makes it a priority. "I've been around situations where all the offense has done is tried to score as fast as they could and didn't worry about going three-and-out in 30 sec- onds, and places that can put a defense at a disadvantage," Knowles said. "He hasn't structured it like that here. He has made it conducive to be successful on defense. "They've had various coordinators here recently, and guess what? The de- fense has still always been pretty good." The Nittany Lions could easily have found themselves playing Knowles' Buckeyes for the national champion- ship in January, but they fell to Notre Dame in the semifinals on a last-second field goal. The longtime defensive coach said he believes he can help Franklin's program take the next step. "I see it as so close," Knowles said. "I think I can be of service. As you move forward in your career, you really start thinking, how can I be of service? Where can I add to a great team and be a part of a great team? "This is the place. [They're] so close to winning it all, and I'm hopeful that I can help get them there." ■ Stan Drayton, a 32-year coaching veteran with experience in the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and NFL, has joined the Penn State staff as running backs coach. The Nittany Lions announced his hiring on Feb. 14 after a six-day search that followed Ja'Juan Seider's departure for Notre Dame. "Stan Drayton brings decades of experience coaching running backs at the highest levels to our program," coach James Franklin said in a news release. "He is an important addition to our staff. His experience as a head coach and working alongside elite backs in his career will be invaluable to our running backs room." Drayton was most recently the head coach at Temple. He spent nearly three seasons with the Owls, going 9-25 before being let go with two games remaining in the 2024 campaign. Before arriving in Philadelphia in 2022, he had spent most of his career as a running backs coach at both the college and pro levels. A Cleveland native and Al- legheny College graduate, he had stints at Mississippi State, Florida, Tennessee, Syracuse, Ohio State and Texas. He also coached the Chicago Bears' running backs in 2015 and '16. Drayton was part of Urban Meyer's staff at Ohio State in 2014 when the Buckeyes won the inaugural College Football Playoff championship. That year, Ezekiel Elliott ranked third nation- ally in rushing with 1,878 yards. Elliott was the Offensive MVP of the cham- pionship game, rushing for 246 yards and 4 touchdowns on 36 carries against Oregon. The year before, Drayton helped Carlos Hyde rush for 1,521 yards en route to winning Big Ten Running Back of the Year honors. At Texas, Bijan Robinson won first-team All-Big 12 honors in 2021 under Drayton's guidance, averaging 112.7 yards per game. ESPN's Pete Thamel reported that Drayton signed a one-year deal with the Nittany Lions. Penn State did not disclose the terms of the agreement. "I am excited and honored to be join- ing this elite organization led by Coach Franklin," Drayton said in a statement. "I have so much respect for the culture and program he has built here. Penn State has a rich running back tradition and a very talented running back room now. I am thrilled for this opportunity and am looking forward to getting to work." Drayton is only the third running backs coach of the Franklin era. Charles Huff was the first, arriving with Franklin from Vanderbilt in 2014 and eventually leav- ing to become offensive coordinator at Mississippi State when the SEC school hired PSU's Joe Moorhead as head coach. Seider replaced Huff in 2018 and held the job for seven seasons, serving as one of the staff's top recruiters in ad- dition to his position-coaching role. Drayton is set to inherit one of the top backfield tandems in the country in se- niors Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Single- ton. This past season, Allen finished fifth in the Big Ten with 1,108 rushing yards, while Singleton was right behind him in sixth place with 1,099 yards. — Greg Pickel Lions Hire Stan Drayton To Oversee Running Backs Drayton has been one of the country's top running backs coaches, having helped develop Ezekiel Elliott at Ohio State and Bijan Robinson at Texas. PHOTO COURTESY PENN STATE ATHLETICS