JoePa's Successor?

A lot of talk has been going down lately about who should be next in line at Penn State once Paterno steps down. I guess this has been a hot topic as of late because everyone figures Joe will retire after this season.

Wrong.

JoePa is going to coach forever. He will never retire. You know what else? Penn St. will be better for it. No one wants to go to Penn St. just because it's Penn St. People want to wear the PSU uniform so that they can have the opportunity to play for Paterno.

However, since everyone and their momma is making a JoePa successor list, I figured why the hell not.

Here are my top candidates to replace the un-replaceable one.

1. Greg Schiano - The current Rutgers head coach is the most likely choice as of now. In a recent poll on this most awesome of sites, you people voted Schiano as the leading candidate as well. The only problem is from Schiano's end. He repeatedly has turned down job opportunities to remain at Rutgers. I don't see that happening here. I believe Schiano would jump at a chance to coach the Nittany Lions. Like it or not, he would have a better chance of winning in the Big Eleven as opposed to the Big East.

2. Galen Hall - Hall is currently an assistant coach under Joe Paterno. If PSU were to give JoePa the power to pick his own replacement, I'm sure Hall would be his choice. Unfortunately, it seems Penn St. will not afford him that opportunity. One negative on Hall is his age. The Nittany Lions would effectively be moving from one old guy to the next. Usually you see a program go considerably younger when a long term coach is stepping down.

3. Bret Bielema - I've seen the current Wisconsin head coach named as the favorite to replace JoePa on several sites. I don't see what Bielema's motivation would be in making this move. He seems to be set up for better success at Wisconsin. Also, making a lateral move within the Big Eleven doesn't seem to make much sense. Then again, I thought Tom O' Brien was crazy when he did the same thing in the ACC.

4. Al Golden - I can't believe a Temple head coach is being named in job searches now. Granted, Golden is a long shot, but just the fact that he's being mentioned is a testament to his coaching ability. If Golden can improve the Owls consistently his name could be mentioned for several other positions. You never know, if Paterno sticks around for a few more years, Golden may be the hottest coach on the market.