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marks Penn State's sideline during games and at practices, Vanderlinden's low-key, amiable demeanor may have been a little out of place. Maybe Vanderlinden was ready to leave anyway, and not just for professional reasons. At 53, he seems a little young to retire from coaching, and maybe he was getting antsy for another challenge, either as a head coach or as a defensive coordinator/linebackers coach, perhaps even in the NFL. I remember his wife, Lisa, telling me some time ago that the family had only expected to stay at Penn State for a few years. They had been contemplating returning to their Midwestern roots either before the younger of their two children, Reid, entered high school or after his graduation, depending on Ron's professional opportunities. Reid graduated in 2009, then went to Johns Hopkins University and is now working on a master's degree at Penn State. In a terse news release from Penn State, Vanderlinden and quarterbacks coach Charlie Fisher both resigned "to seek other opportunities. The release includ" ed vague, noncommittal quotes from each man and from O'Brien. "I appreciate all of Ron and Charlie's hard work and thank them for their dedication and service to Penn State, O'Brien was " quoted as saying. "I wish them well in all their future endeavors. " Of course, anyone in management who has ever been involved with personnel knows this is standard jargon that is used when high-profile people leave a company. Like any CEO, a head coach has every right to surround himself with people he trusts to follow his dictates. He also has to feel confident that he has the right chemistry on the staff and the team. Assistants don't necessarily have to be pals or cronies, but they can't be round pegs trying to fit into square holes. However, if Vanderlinden isn't the best linebackers coach in the country, who is? How about Luke Fickell of Ohio State? Or Bob Gregory of Boise State? Readers probably have heard of Fickell, who was the Buckeyes' interim head coach be- tween Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer and is now Meyer's defensive coordinator. But how many have heard of Gregory? According to FootballScoop, the organization that has presented the Linebacker Coach of the Year Award since 2008, and Yahoo Sports, Fickell and Gregory are among the best. In a 2012 list by Yahoo of the top 10 coaching staffs in college football, Fickell and Gregory were the only linebackers coaches mentioned by name. Meanwhile, the FootballScoop honor, which is presented annually at the American Football Coaches Convention, went to Gregory last year and Fickell in 2010. Other honorees have included Dave Huxtable (Wisconsin, 2011), Bob Fraser (Rutgers, 2009) and Bill McGovern (Boston College, 2008). Candidates are nominated by coaches, athletic directors and athletic department personnel. Prior winners comprise the committee that chooses the annual winner. Scott Roussel runs FootballScoop, which describes itself as the premier website for coaching job information. He said Vanderlinden has been nominated in the past and was once a finalist, but he wasn't able to be more definitive. "We'll get 30 to 40 different guys nominated for each award, he said. "I'm " pretty confident he's been nominated every year. I don't have an answer as to why he didn't win versus why anybody else didn't win. I don't think the coaches who judge put any weight into the caliber of the player and whether he is an AllAmerican or a pro. I think the quality and attributes our awards try to reflect are the fullness of the job: recruit the right guys, develop and coach them to the best of their ability and do it the right way. " Sounds to me like those are Vanderlinden's attributes, so the fact that he has never won the award is puzzling. By the time this is published, O'Brien may have hired another linebackers coach whom he believes fits his mold. We won't know for years whether Vanderlinden's replacement will be as good as his predecessor or better. The continued reputation of Linebacker U is now I on the line. The Remarkable Journey of the 2012 Nittany Lions A diary by Lou Prato, author of the Penn State Football Encyclopedia and four other Nittany Lion books Personalized autographed copy available soon through Lou Prato and Associates Call 814-692-7577 or email louprato@comcast.net Price: $19.95 plus tax and shipping

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