Will Eagles Steal Bill O’Brien From Penn State?


Pity Poor Penn State. Things finally seemed to be settling down in Happy Valley after the series of body blows the university and its football program took in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, and there was even reason to hope: New coach Bill O’Brien had salvaged a potential fiasco and turned the program’s first post-Joe Paterno campaign into a winning season. That success has now made O’Brien attractive to other employers, including Penn State’s home-state NFL neighbor, the Philadelphia Eagles. Tom Flynn at the Patriot-News, however, doesn’t think Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie is willing to alienate a fan base that overlaps with his own. “Would Lurie want to pay the cost of ticking off an already (and always) surly fan base? There are plenty of Eagles fans who follow Penn State on Saturdays. Should O’Brien leave after just one season, the incredible progress he has made in putting Penn State back together would be blunted.” It’s not like Lurie needs Eagles fans to be any more surly, does he? In related news, Andy Reid apparently didn’t make the trip to Arizona to interview for the vacant Cardinals job. Does that mean he’s going to Kansas City? Do we care anymore? [Patriot-News]