Chris Petersen and the Boise St. Broncos defeated the Arizona St. Sun Devils, 56-24, in the 2011 Las Vegas Bowl on Thursday night. But before Thursday's game, Petersen was visited at least twice by Penn State officials in the week leading up to the game, according to David Jones the Patriot-News. Penn State has been looking for its next coach for the last month, attempting to find an individual who brings integrity and honesty to the position as well a big-time coaching ability.
Jones, though, points out that Petersen doesn't have the cleanest of records, as his program did run into NCAA sanctions for recruiting violations in 2011. Petersen, also, is a Rocky Mountain/West Coast guy.
Additionally, we should also take into account what happened the last time a Boise State coach left for a bigger school in a BCS conference. Dan Hawkins went to the Colorado Buffaloes in 2006 and failed to complete the 2010 season. Penn State is a school with greater nation-wide recognition and with a better recruiting base than Colorado. Hawkins' hiring is a cautionary tale, but not one that should dissuade other schools from pursuing Petersen.
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