Penn State president Rodney Erickson has talked in recent weeks about re-assessing the football program's role at the university. On Tuesday, however, he offered comments on the ongoing search to replace Joe Paterno, fired on Nov. 9 in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
Jan Murphy of the Harrisburg Patriot-News reports:
As for the caliber of those who want to succeed the legendary Joe Paterno, who was fired on Nov. 9 in the aftermath of child sex abuse charges against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, Erickson said based on his conversations with acting athletic director David Joyner, he is impressed with the candidates who have come forward.
"The search committee is talking to prospective candidates and we hope to wrap it up by bowl time ... ideally or shortly thereafter," Erickson said, following back-to-back meetings with legislators and the governor at the state Capitol.
Penn State will face Houston at the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas on Jan. 2. That would give Joyner and his six-person search committee just under three weeks to name a replacement in time. Interim head coach Tom Bradley is expected to lead the Nittany Lions through the bowl game.