There is a national championship contender in the Big Ten not named Ohio State or Oregon. It’s just not the team everyone assumed it would be.

Penn State has more than 800,000 living graduates. Another Big Ten school recently took over the top spot as the largest alumni network in the country

Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea, who has done really good work at his alma mater, is another potential option. The 43-year-old, who has worked at several other strong academic schools, has Vandy at 5-1 this season after leading the Commodores to a bowl game last year.

Joel Klatt joins Colin Cowherd to discuss Penn State’s search for a new head coach, whether or not USC can be trusted as a contender, and Indiana establishing themselves as title contenders after beating Oregon.

Nebraska coach and former Penn State linebacker Matt Rhule is the betting favorite at 3/1, followed by Boston College’s Bill O’Brien (4/1) and Indiana’s Curt Cignetti (6/1), per Betonline.ag. Other names of note listed are Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin (8/1) and former Florida and Ohio State coach Urban Meyer (12/1).

Curt Cignetti or Matt Rhule? Both coaches should be among the four names Penn State calls after firing James Franklin, Joel Klatt said.

College football Week 8 odds, picks, predictions, TV channel, streaming for Michigan State Spartans vs Indiana Hoosiers game Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.