Reports: Penn State Hires Kansas’ Andy Kotelnicki as Offensive Coordinator

Penn State has hired Kansas' Andy Kotelnicki as its newest offensive coordinator, prying one of the nation's most sought-after coaches from his long-term relationship with Jayhawks coach Lance Leipold, according to multiple reports. The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman first reported the news.

Kotelnicki has been Leipold's offensive coordinator since 2013 through tours at Wisconsin-Whitewater, Buffalo and Kansas.

Leipold named Kotelnicki as his associate head coach in January and once asked reporters not to "write anything about" about his offensive coordinator, according to CBS Sports, to prevent other programs from poaching him.

"Andy and I have been together for over 11 years," Leipold said of Kotelnicki at Big 12 media days this summer. "I trust him. He's an outstanding coach. I've known what a great coach Andy is for a long time. Andy will be a head coach some day. There's no doubt about that."

Here's a look at Penn State's new offensive coordinator.

Who is Andy Kotelnicki?

Kotelnicki has worked with Leipold since 2013, when he joined the head coach's staff at Wisconsin-Whitewater. They spent two seasons together in Wisconsin, moved to Buffalo for seven years and went from 2-10 to 6-7 to 8-4 over the past three seasons at Kansas. The Jayhawks finished last in the Big 12 in scoring in 2021 (20.8 points per game); they're fourth this season (33.6). The Jayhawks finished 21st nationally in scoring offense in 2022 (one spot behind Penn State) and averaged a school-record 7 yards per play.

Kotelnicki ran highly productive offenses at Wisconsin-Whitewater and Buffalo before moving to Kansas with Leipold in 2021. In two seasons at Wisconsin-Whitewater, Leipold and Kotelnicki won two Division III national championships, averaging 40.1 points per game in 2014. Their offenses continued to thrive for seven seasons at Buffalo, setting a host of school records, including total offense (5,803 yards in 2018) and rushing offense (3,256 yards in 2019). 

Penn State coach James Franklin first became aware of Kotelnicki in 2019, when the Lions hosted Buffalo. Franklin praised Kotelnicki's offense for breaking "all kinds of records at the University of Buffalo," including the single-season team rushing record that season for rushing touchdowns (36). During the 2020 COVID season, Buffalo averaged a school-record 478.4 yards per game, including 287.4 rushing.

How long could Kotelnicki stay at Penn State?

He certainly has proven loyal, spending 11 seasons with Leipold at three stops. In January, Kotelnicki signed a new five-year contract that doubled his salary to $1 million and named him Kansas' associate head coach. According to the Lawrence Journal-World, Kotelnicki's contract includes a $700,000 buyout clause if he leaves for another coordinator position outside the Big 12.

"I don't know many coordinators that are getting five-year contracts, and that shows my faith in him, but also I believe what he's earned as well," Leipold said at Big 12 media days.

Kotelnicki has expressed interest in becoming a head coach, and Leipold expects he'll get the chance soon.

"From our first weeks working together at [Wisconsin]-Whitewater, Andy told me that,” Leipold said at Big 12 media days, according to the Topeka Capital-Journal. "He’s always asked for other responsibilities, other things he can do, because that’s part of his goals. But Andy’s got a good feel for the big picture. He’s highly organized.”