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Penn State adds special teams analyst with ties to current, former Nittany Lions in latest offseason staffing move

Greg Pickelby:Greg Pickel•05/12/25•

GregPickel

NCAA Football: Penn State Blue-White Spring Game
(Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images)

Penn State football is adding a special teams analyst with ties to two former Nittany Lion assistants to James Franklin’s 12th staff in State College. Allen Tucker is joining the program. He replaces former assistant special teams coordinator Keith Bruno, who left the team after spring ball to pursue opportunities outside of college football, according to FootballScoop.

Tucker spent 2024 as a special teams analyst, and was the de-facto special teams coordinator, under former Penn State receivers coach and current Troy head coach Gerad Parker. He announced he was leaving the team in January. His time at Troy, of course, is headlined by his link to new Penn State receiver and returner specialist Devonte Ross. The former Trojan was a first-team All-Sun Belt pick as a receiver and at the all-purpose spot after catching 76 passes for 1,043 yards and 11 touchdowns while also returning 13 kickoffs for an average of 16.5 yards and nine punts for 153 yards and a touchdown. The score came against Iowa, a game in which the now senior added five receptions for 142 yards and two receiving touchdowns in addition to his special teams score.

“That game was a blessing,” Ross told reporters this spring. “I mean, to be able to go out there and do what I did, you know, credit to my teammates. Getting to play on that stage and kind of getting a feel of what it could be like in the Big Ten, just performing at that level, and knowing and understanding what it takes to be successful on this level.”

More: Penn State officially lists Dan Connor as its linebackers coach, makes numerous other title changes: See the list here

Before Troy, Tucker worked under Joe Moorhead both at Mississippi State, where he played for one year, was a student assistant for four, and graduated, and at Akron. He started his full-time coaching career at Valdosta State in 2016 before spending 2017 at The Citadel.

“During his two seasons with the Zips, Tucker served as the special teams coordinator under head coach Joe Moorhead, where the Zips ranked 10th nationally in punt coverage (1.79) and 28th in kickoff coverage (17.23) in 2023,” his Troy bio says. “In 2022, Akron ranked fifth in country in kick return yards and in the top three in the MAC in both kickoff return and punt return. Additionally, Tucker was instrumental in three players: Darrian Lewis, Blake Hester, and Dante Jackson earning All-MAC selections on special teams.”

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