By all indications, Penn State is moving quickly to hire a new head basketball coach to replace the departed Ed DeChellis. It was reported Wednesday that former basketball coach Eddie Fogler has been hired by the school to consult in the search and already it appears there's a serious candidate for the job.
According to multiple sources, Penn State will consider East Carolina coach Jeff Lebo, who is from Carlisle, Pa. Lebo was also recruited to play at North Carolina by Fogler when he was an assistant to then coach Dean Smith. Lebo's father, Dave, was a longtime coach at Carlisle High.
Lebo was fired at Auburn but hired at East Carolina last year and led the Pirates to an 8-8 record in Conference USA and an 18-16 record overall, losing to Jacksonville in overtime in the CIT tournament.
Lebo was fired at Auburn after posting four losing seasons in six years there. His team won 20+ games just once in his tenure there, the 2009 campaign when the Tigers went 24-12. Lebo has failed to make the NCAA Tournament in each of his first nine seasons as a college head coach.
He is, however, a friend of Fogler, so it's probably no too surprising he's getting a look despite his rather lackluster resume. That said, you can assume Penn State will probably be looking at some more qualified candidates in the near future. Lebo is a PR nightmare waiting to happen.