Penn State replaces offensive coordinator after one season

Updated Jan. 8, 2021 8:25 p.m. ET

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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Penn State has hired Mike Yurcich as offensive coordinator, replacing Kirk Ciarrocca after one year with the former Texas and Ohio State assistant.

Yurcich was offensive coordinator at Texas last season, but found himself out after the school fired coach Tom Herman last week.

Yurcich was passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for one season at Ohio State in 2019 after six productive seasons at Oklahoma State.

Yurcich’s offenses have averaged 6.49 yards per play, first among offensive coordinator’s since 2013.

Ciarrocca was hired away from Minnesota after last season by Nittany Lions coach James Franklin to replace offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne, who left to become head coach at Old Dominion.

The Nittany Lions got off to an 0-5 start in the Big Ten's truncated season, a stunning fall for a team that started the season ranked in the top 10. Penn State won its final four games.

The offense ranked in the middle of the pack in the conference in yards per play at 5.46 and quarterback Sean Clifford seemed to regress.

Penn State rotated Clifford and Will Levis for much of the back half of the season.

The offense was also hampered by injury and illness taking the two best running backs off the roster one game into the season.

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