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Penn State head coach James Franklin and quarterbacks coach Ricky Rahne during spring football practice at Holuba Hall on March 28, 2015. Joe Hermitt, PennLive

Penn State coach James Franklin said quarterbacks coach Ricky Rahne will call the plays on offense when the Lions battle Georgia in the TaxSlayer Bowl on Jan. 2, but don't expect that to be the case next season.

Franklin made clear that he is looking outside of the program to replace former offensive coordinator John Donovan, who was relieved of his duties at the end of the regular season, adding during a conference call to accept the TaxSlayer Bowl invite that he hopes to have the search wrapped up soon.

"I hope to have the position filled in the next week and a half or two weeks or so," Franklin said. "We'll see how the process plays out, but that person will probably come on and spend that time evaluating our players, evaluating our staff and being able to have some input.

"But it's not like we're gonna put in a new system right before the bowl game. We're going to try to keep things as normal as we possible can. And it will be a great opportunity and a great experience for Ricky Rahne as well, to call a game and also put in a game plan."

Rahne has never called plays before, and it is expected that he will return to his role as quarterbacks coach once an offensive coordinator is hired.

There was some insight given into the hiring process, but Franklin did not go as far as saying the search was down to a certain number of candidates. He did say, though, that many have inquired about the position.

"As you guys know, we have a list [of candidates] and I've had a list for awhile, but then when you have a position open like this, there are a lot of people that come available and your phone starts ringing off the hook," Franklin said. "It's open some doors. There have been conversations going, there's been a lot of research in terms of looking at what people have been able to do in their history, in terms of putting an offense together, in terms of scoring points, and in terms of being successful.

"Conversations, doing some statistical analysis, and then obviously looking at finding a time and a place to sit down in person and work through some of these things. This process has been ongoing since we made that decision."

It's unclear which direction Penn State will go, but it can be expected that the Lions will hire a coach with a history of play calling experience, and one that has a successful track record of doing so at that.

The hire is likely to be made by the time Penn State faces the Bulldogs, but if it takes longer than that, Franklin said it would be OK, adding he knows the decision has to be right.

But there is clearly value in having the new coordinator on campus as soon as possible to begin the evaluation process and move the program forward.

"I think the best interest for our players and our program is to hire a guy that's been calling plays and has been successful for a number of years," Franklin said.

"If we can get somebody in place to evaluate our players, be around out staff, so right after the bowl game, they're able to jump in from day one in terms of moving forward the program and what we're going to be doing on offense. And then for our players, to not have that in the back of their mind, and be concerned for the future and what it holds. I think it really allows them to be focused on the game and not be concerned or distracted for what the future holds or what it's going to look like."