What led Jim Knowles to Penn State from Ohio State: 'This is where he wanted to be'

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.

When Jim Knowles and David Cutcliffe navigated the Northeast, there was no telling how wide-ranging their conversations would be.

Time spent in the car on recruiting trips for Cutcliffe, then Dukes head coach and Knowles, his defensive coordinator, wasnt only about football.

Wed take some long rides in the car and kind of see some history all the way back from the revolutionary time, Cutcliffe said.

Jims so smart, hed know all of that history.

Advertisement There were plenty of personal anecdotes weaved in along the way.

In Boston, Knowles was miserable working in finance in his early 20s.

Fresh out of Cornell, he thought that was his next step.

His high school buddies sensed his unhappiness when they visited.

Cutcliffe felt it too as they approached New York City years later and Knowles mentioned what his life mightve been like had he stayed away from football.

He couldve made a boatload of money in finance, said Rich Gannon, the former NFL quarterback who was Knowles high school teammate at Philadelphias St.

Joes Prep (hes still one of Knowles best friends).

Hes a bright guy, but it just wasnt in his heart.

He wasnt passionate about it.

He figured it out pretty quick.

Within decades, the college football industry would come to know the 59-year-old as one of the most coveted coordinators in the sport.

Knowles is one part Ivy League smarts and two parts Philadelphia straight shooter.

Hes the keeps-to-himself man who holes up in his office on Sundays game-planning, but come Saturdays, hell shoulder the blame if the scribbles on the whiteboard and pages of notes werent good enough for his players.

He watches so much tape and he understands not just football, but he understands the individual athlete and how they function, and he puts them in really good spots, said Jason Babin who starred in Knowles defense at Western Michigan.

He really dives deep into the individual athlete.

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Its a unique trait.

Penn State hopes Knowles can keep the Nittany Lions on course to win a national championship.

They made it clear last month that they dont intend to go backward by making him the highest-paid coordinator in the country.

After reaching the semifinals and tasting College Football Playoff success, this offseason is about erasing the small margins that separate the Nittany Lions from playing for a national title.

Advertisement Everything here is so close to winning it all, and Im hopeful that I can help get it there, Knowles said this month during his introduction.

Knowles is Penn States third defensive coordinator in as many years.

Whether it was Manny Diaz, Tom Allen or Brent Pry years before that, Penn State found ways to field great defenses.

Tapping into Knowles brilliance could be the difference between a top-10 unit and one that pushes to be the countrys best.

Jims strength is game day, said Oklahoma States Mike Gundy, who hired Knowles in 2018.

His ability to understand what offenses are doing and how to attack them and how to stop them.

...

Rah-Rah is not him.

His strength is, OK guys, this is the plan.

This is what were gonna do.

If you guys do this, were gonna have success.

Lately, his scheme has been on fire.

Thats why Ohio State outbid Oklahoma State for Knowles in 2021.

Its precisely why James Franklin and Penn State swooped in last month, just days after Ohio State won a national title with the nations top-ranked defense and extended an offer worth an average of $3.1 million per year, making Knowles the highest-paid coordinator in the country.

We spoke a couple years back when the position was open, so that helped.

We already had pretty good familiarity with each other, Franklin said.

We were able to start conversations after the national championship game, obviously, and it went quickly.

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I know theres a ton of excitement from our players, theres a ton of excitement from the fans, theres a ton of excitement from our supporters and alumni and lettermen, and all those things matter.

Knowles plans to mesh some of what has made Penn States defenses successful in the past with what has worked for him.

Being at Penn State, at a place that at times felt a world away instead of 3-1/2 hours from his native Philadelphia, was part of the lure.

I knew hed be courted, but Jims not chasing money.

Jims chasing happiness, which I love, Cutcliffe said.

Being at Penn State somewhere along the way was probably a dream for him.

Thats just the reality.

Jack Branka waved from the stands in Knowles direction last month during pregame warmups at the national championship game.

Knowlesy, as Brankas wife used to call him, made sure his former high school football coach was on hand for the Ohio State-Notre Dame showdown.

It was a far cry from the days when Branka and his wife used to drive to Ithaca, N.Y., a couple of times per year when Knowles was the head coach at Cornell from 2004-2009.

They would take 100 Philadelphia soft pretzels for his players to enjoy at their Friday practice.

Advertisement Now, Branka and his son were seated with some of Knowles former Cornell players who made the trip.

As Knowles defense rattled Notre Dame in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Branka thought of Knowles like he always does, as the former All-Catholic league linebacker who no matter how busy has always maintained a relationship with his coach.

Every summer, Knowles organizes a golf outing with his best friends, Gannon and Clayton Carlin.

The three former St.

Joes Prep teammates who carved out football careers, clear their schedules and fly in from Minnesota and Texas to golf and share a meal with their former high school coach.

Branka is tickled that after all these years they still think of him.

Hes never forgotten where hes come from, Gannon said.

Hes a blue-collar kid, his dad was a detective, and he came from a working-class family.

Hes had to work at everything and create his own opportunities.

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Hes genuine.

Little did any of them know at the national title game that within days of the confetti clearing and after a celebratory cigar, Knowles and his agent would field offers from suitors and alter the trajectory of several Playoff-contending teams.

None of those close to him are surprised he chose Penn State.

Ever since the Sunday morning highlight show flashed across TV sets in the 1970s and 1980s in Philadelphia, Knowles had an interest in the place.

Gannon remembered former Penn State assistant Dick Anderson coming to their school his senior year, but neither was a Penn State-caliber recruit.

Knowles recalls the Linebacker-U legacy but quickly realized his family didnt have the financial resources to ever go to a game during his childhood.

We both had these dreams and aspirations of playing at Penn State, Gannon said.

For Jimmy, this is full circle.

He wouldve loved to have played at Penn State.

We all would have.

Growing up in Philadelphia it wasnt like we wanted to go to North Carolina or USC.

No, we wanted to go to Penn State.

Many of them, Branka included, plan to be in Beaver Stadium supporting Knowles this fall.

Based on his career, he had a chance to pick where he wanted to go, and this is where he wanted to be, Branka said.

That means a lot.

Staff meetings at Duke often began with David Cutcliffe giving Knowles the floor.

The head coach started meetings with a thought of the day, but much like their car rides, there was no telling what fact or tidbit of inspiration Knowles would hit on.

You could go from hearing something very novelistic, some made-up story to make a point, or it could be grasping something from history, Cutcliffe said.

Jim was the guy we called the mad scientist.

He could get on a board, and he didnt even know anybody else was in the room.

Wed all be sitting there, myself and the defensive coaches, and it was just magic.

Advertisement Gundy described Knowles as a brainiac whose desire to shut the office door and isolate himself for game-planning shouldnt be mistaken for a coach who isnt thoughtful or engaging.

During the interview process at Oklahoma State, Gundy brought in Knowles and a half dozen other candidates to interview in front of the staff.

Gundy was blown away by the statistical success Knowles had at Duke, especially with points given up per drive attempt.

He quickly realized this was the coach to hire.

When we got him out of Duke, he wasnt a prized recruit, wasnt making a ton of money for someone in our profession, and we were able to identify him and get him in here, Gundy said.

Im thrilled that Jims been able to earn everything hes gotten.

Knowles had to find creative solutions to problems when working at Duke.

He would joke that the team would need to beat teams with its future doctors and lawyers.

One offseason when Cutcliffe tasked Knowles and the defensive staff with coming up with ways to respond to up-tempo offenses, they all were in stitches when Knowles revealed the names of the various blitzes theyd use next season.

Many were named after Cutcliffes grandchildren.

One blitz was just Cut.

It just made us all laugh, Cutcliffe said.

Thats Jim.

Hes a football guy, but hes a people guy.

As Oklahoma State chased a Playoff bid, Knowles insisted he wouldnt yell at anyone one day at practice.

Instead, he went drill to drill holding a coffee mug that read, That aint it, bro.

Through gritted teeth, he sipped it after every miscue.

He has the ability to know when he needs to do something different, when he needs to change it up a little bit, Gundy said.

Hes very to himself, mad scientist, but he has a way of relating to the players where they trust his ability to know what to do and when to do it.

Advertisement Babin still laughs, thinking about one shovel pass he missed in a game at Western Michigan during his freshman year.

Knowles made sure to run shovel passes during practice periods for the rest of Babins career.

Looking back on my NFL career, I never missed a shovel pass in 12 years, Babin said.

Jim has those traits that make you a great coach: The details, he actually cares, its not about him.

Establishing that trust with Penn States players will take time this offseason.

Knowles already cautioned that he wont be overly expressive when he is calling games this fall.

That calm comes from all the hours spent in the office, scheming and adjusting and trusting that he hasnt put too much on his players.

After all, Knowles process works.

Hes the best defensive coordinator in college football, Gannon said.

If you watch his body of work and what he does situationally, how he utilizes personnel, you look at red zone defense, you look at third-down defense, some of his packages, his pressure schemes, how he attacks protections, hes really good.

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The kids at Penn State are gonna get somebody who also cares about them as people.

(Top photo: Kevin C.

Cox / Getty Images).

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