Let’s Talk About Anthony Poindexter

The 48-year-old has been on James Franklin’s staff since before the 2021 season as safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator.

In that time, two defensive coordinators have left Penn State, and each time, Poindexter took over as interim DC, calling the defense for the Outback Bowl (Jan. 2022) and Peach Bowl (Dec. 2023).

So Poindexter is clearly high on the totem pole at Penn State. When word got out that Tom Allen would be leaving for the same position at Clemson after just one season, Poindexter’s name almost immediately surfaced as a candidate.

Report: Penn State DC Tom Allen Leaving For Clemson

But how strong of a candidate is he? Here are three pros and three cons of promoting Anthony Poindexter to defensive coordinator.

THE PROS

No. 1: He’s really good at his current job.

Photo from Penn State Athletics: Anthony Poindexter

When people do their job well, they get promoted. Poindexter has done well as Penn State’s safeties coach. In his first two seasons, he helped Jaquan Brisker become an All-American and Ji’Ayir Brown become an NFL talent. Since then, he helped develop Kevin Winston Jr. into one of America’s best safeties, helped Jaylen Reed become a big-time player and developed Zakee Wheatley— who barely saw the field at times in 2023– become one of the team’s best defenders by the end of 2024. Poindexter’s position group has been balling for a long time, and a reward could well be in order.

No. 2: Stability… sort of 

Franklin knows that stability at the coordinator position isn’t really attainable. The days of Tom Bradley being on the coordinator job for more than a decade are gone. With coordinators these days, one of two things will happen: They’ll do a great job and get hired somewhere else, or they’ll do a poor job and get fired. Penn State fans have seen examples of both, with Manny Diaz doing well enough with Penn State’s defense to re-join the head-coaching ranks at Duke and Mike Yurcich being underwhelming enough to get fired as offensive coordinator. So long-term stability isn’t really a thing anymore with coordinators.

But that doesn’t mean Franklin wants to be replacing one every single year. Since Poindexter has already been part of the Penn State family for several seasons, there’s built-in loyalty. That doesn’t mean Poindexter will stay forever but it makes it less likely that he’ll bolt after a year or two. Having the same DC for three-to-five seasons instead of one-to-two would be a nice change of pace for Penn State.

No. 3: His players love him

The day Allen officially became Clemson’s DC, one of his best players at Penn State, Kobe King, declared for the Draft.

In his farewell statement to Penn State and its fans, he thanked head coach James Franklin, past defensive coordinators Manny Diaz and Brent Pry and current defensive analyst/former Penn State linebacker Dan Connor.

He didn’t thank Allen.

It’s not yet publicly known— and probably never will be— why King left Allen out of his letter. But when a team captain who was there for four years mentions every defensive coordinator he played for but one, it’s fair to question why that is and how Penn State’s defensive players felt about Tom Allen.

Quotes by King from spring practice suggest that Penn State respected Allen as a teacher of football but doesn’t suggest that they had the same love for him that they did for Diaz.

“I would say we didn’t expect some of the aspects that were presented to us by him, I would say,” King said. “Just with it being… how can I make this more clear… Manny Diaz, he was a guy everyone just wanted to run through a wall for him…. Tom Allen, it just seems like he can get the defense to understand why we’re running through that wall. So I would say he’s bringing a different aspect from the whole defense and the whole team and he makes us develop the mental capacity to understand the value of the game and defense.”

“He emphasizes the mindset part. Just like, we feel what we feel, but you can’t approach a practice and meeting with certain feelings. You have to approach it with a certain mindset that will help you get through it. So, I would definitely say just him emphasizing how impactful having a strong mindset is has been very influential to us.”

Here’s what one of Poindexter’s best players had to say about him.

“Hilarious,” was a word KJ Winston used to describe him. “That’s my guy. Love having him as a coach. Blessed that I chose to play under him.”

“He’s never going to ask me to be these safeties he’s had before or be this person he has in the room,” Winston said. “He said, ‘Be the best you and I’ll be happy.’” He said ‘You play your best football, and that’s what I want out of you, and I don’t want you to be this person or that person.’”

‘I Feel Like That was the Best Thing’: Penn State S KJ Winston Reflects on Anthony Poindexter’s Key Piece of Advice

With all due respect to Allen, it doesn’t seem clear how his players felt about him. Poindexter is a different story.

THE CONS

No. 1: It wouldn’t make a splash

Penn State made a splash with its last two defensive coordinator hires. Allen was a head coach who won National Coach of the Year in 2020. Diaz was the head coach at Miami and universally regarded as one of the best defensive minds in America. Poindexter’s name doesn’t have the same pop. With Penn State close to a national title, some fans are gonna want a “splash hire” to make a statement. Poindexter wouldn’t make a splash the way Diaz and Allen did when they were hired.

No. 2: Limited track record 

Anthony Poindexter has been a DC before but his experience isn’t extensive. Before Penn State, Poindexter was Purdue’s co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach. Before that, he was UConn’s full defensive coordinator from 2014-2016. In 2014, his defense ranked 86th in the country. In 2015, it rose to 15th before sliding back to 65th during his final season. So Poindexter is qualified but as far as being a coordinator goes, he doesn’t have the polish the Allen or Diaz has when there were hired.

No. 3: Bob Diaco

GREENVILLE, NC – OCTOBER 29: Connecticut Huskies head coach Bob Diaco complains about a call in a game between the East Carolina Pirates and the Connecticut Huskies on October 29, 2016. East Carolina defeated Connecticut 41-3. (Photo by Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire)

At UConn, Poindexter worked under a defensive-minded head coach in Bob Diaco. Diaco is known in the industry to meddle in what his teams did defensively. So it’s fair to question how much power Poindexter really had.

Personally? I think Anthony Poindexter is ready for the reasons mentioned in the “pros” column. But we’ll see what James Franklin thinks.