Kalani Sitake sticking with BYU amid Penn State interest

kalani sitake will remain BYUBoth sides agreed to a long-term extension on Tuesday amid interest penn state in hiring him as their next football coach.

“He is a proven leader, and we are grateful he is choosing BYU once again,” Cougars athletic director Brian Santiago said in a news release. “His legacy of building a championship program the BYU way will continue. He is one of the best people in the business. We are excited to continue the wave of positive momentum with him.”

The development comes as No. 11 BYU prepares for Saturday’s Big 12 title game against No. 4 BYU. texas techAutomatic bid gets secured with winner college football playoff,

Sitake has been the head coach of BYU since 2016 and has won over 65% of his games. He led BYU to an 11-2 record in 2024, and the Cougars are 11-1 this season as they head into their third year in the Big 12.

BYU officials were aggressive in trying to retain Sitake, sources said, and considered retaining him the athletic department’s top priority.

Sitake has won at least 10 games in four of the last six seasons at BYU. After a 2-7 mark in Big 12 play during the program’s transition year in 2023, the Cougars have gone 15-3 and have identified a long-term answer at quarterback in freshman bear bachmeyer,

“I am humbled and grateful for the love we have received from BYU fans and the confidence and support our university leadership has given our football program,” Sitake said.

“This is good for the stability and future of BYU football. I’m excited about our future.”

The Penn State coaching search had focused on Sitake in recent weeks, Both parties are engaged in discussions about the jobWhile there was mutual interest – including negotiations about staffing and other details of a possible tenure at the State College – no agreement was ever reached, and Sitake ultimately chose to remain in Provo,

Penn State officials were active early in their coaching search, which included numerous in-person meetings across the country. Sources told Thamel that this activity has calmed down in recent weeks, even as candidates found new jobs and others received new contracts.

Sitake, who played high school football at Missouri and starred at BYU before signing with cincinnati bengals As of 2001, he has spent his entire coaching career in the Mountain Time Zone or farther west, with stops at BYU, Oregon State, Utah, Southern Utah and eastern Arizona. He is BYU’s fourth head coach since LaVell Edwards took over the program in 1972.