Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/916653
F O O T B A L L Rahne to take charge of Nittany Lions' oense When Penn State went looking for an offensive coordinator two years ago, the search lasted for weeks. Names were dangled, rumors were floated and de- bunked, and meetings were taken, as James Franklin searched patiently for John Donovan's successor. One of those meetings, between Franklin and Fordham head coach Joe Moorhead in New York, lasted into the wee hours of the morning and caused Moorhead to miss the last train home. It ended up being time well spent, though, and his two seasons in charge of the Nit- tany Lions' offense were among the best in school history, with the team averag- ing 442.1 yards and 39.4 points in his 26 games as a member of their staff. When Penn State went looking for Moorhead's successor earlier this month, there was considerably less drama. The Nittany Lions didn't need weeks to make their hire, nor did they need to leave campus. Following Moor- head's introductory news conference Nov. 30 at Mississippi State, where he has succeeded Florida- bound Dan Mullen as head coach, Penn State needed just a day to an- nounce that tight ends coach Ricky Rahne would take over as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Rahne had been quarterbacks coach at Penn State before being put in charge of the tight ends when Moorhead joined the staff in 2016. A native of Morrison, Colo., and a graduate of Cornell, he said that his promotion to offensive coordi- nator was the fulfillment of a long-held goal. "Ever since arriving on campus, I've hoped that one day I would earn a chance to lead the offense at Beaver Stadium," he said. "I've been NEWS & NOTES ON THE MOVE Rahne is a "rising star in the profes- sion," Franklin said in naming him of- fensive coordina- tor. Photo by Ryan Snyder |