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Vanderbilt coach James Franklin during the Commodores' upset of No. 15-ranked Georgia in October.

(AP/Mark Humphrey)

What a difference a couple of years make. Or even one.

Back in Dec. 2011 or especially last year at this time, the Penn State football head coaching job was attractive only to a certain highly ambitious and self-confident sector of individuals. Two years ago, the Sandusky scandal had enveloped the entire brand. Last year, the crippling NCAA sanctions were in place with no real indication they might be reduced.

Not a terribly attractive proposition for even the most audacious of coaches. And, had Bill O’Brien left for the Eagles or Browns or Cardinals last year, Penn State would have had a tough time finding a legitimate replacement.

Apparently, those worries have eased somewhat not only because recruiting sanctions have been reduced but because of the job O'Brien has done in keeping the program vital. Though I'm told Penn State is not actively lining up any candidates as a contingency in case O'Brien leaves for one of several NFL jobs for which he's a primary target, possible candidates are discreetly having their people contact Penn State to assess the landscape.

Knowledgeable PSU sources have told me at least three other head coaches have had their intermediaries inquire about the Penn State job, curious about the chances it might come open:

• Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak, a Penn State grad who was on the verge of getting the Penn State job two years ago when the Titans’ unexpected resilience in the NFC playoff picture led the late Titans owner Bud Adams to secure his then-rookie head coach.

Munchak is known as an accomplished offensive line expert and had a stellar career with the Titans/Oilers organization as both an All-Pro player and an assistant coach dating back 31 years. He has not worked for anyone else.

Finishing his third year without a playoff appearance and with Adams having died at age 90 during the season, it’s possible Munchak’s days are numbered in Nashville, at least as the head coach. The Titans are 21-26 during his tenure, 6-9 this year in probably the NFL’s weakest division. With QB Jake Locker hurt much of the season, opponents have loaded up against an offense designed to feature a power running attack that’s never gotten untracked.

I’m told the money men who pull the strings behind the Penn State program would again lean toward the dignified and straight-shooting Munchak as the favorite if, indeed, they must begin a search – which they hope not to.

• Vanderbilt coach James Franklin whose Commodores enjoyed a breakthrough season in the nation’s preeminent college conference. The energetic and relatively young Franklin, not quite 42 years old, has led Vandy to 9-4 and 8-4 records the last two seasons but, more important, 9-7 combined in SEC play.

In the 2013 season’s second half, Franklin’s Commodores upset Georgia, won at Florida and at in-state rival Tennessee. That’s an unprecedented accomplishment for the Northwestern-like academic member of a football-obsessed conference.

Franklin grew up in Bucks County and played quarterback at East Stroudsburg. But he’s also known as a sophisticated offensive mind having learned under O’Brien’s own mentor Ralph Friedgen during two stints at Maryland.

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano, a Bucknell grad and former Penn State assistant who’s finishing his second season with the Bucs, a rocky one that’s featured grumbling from players as he’s tried to clean up an undisciplined team. The Bucs are 4-11 on the heels of a 7-9 rookie season for Schiano. They play decent defense but the quarterback situation has been a mess and the Bucs commit the worst possible sin from an ownership viewpoint: They are a snooze to watch.

Schiano made his name largely at Rutgers where, during a decade there, he turned the Scarlet Knights from a perennial loser into a viable force in the Big East with consistent bowl appearances.

Regardless, Schiano is not thought to be high on the would-be PSU contingency list.

DAVID JONES: djones@pennlive.com.