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No, I don't have any definitive word on whether Bill O'Brien has agreed to become the next head coach of the Houston Texans. What I do have is some tweets and reports that will only serve to muddy the waters more.
For example, remember that Penn State recruit who said he talked with O'Brien after word first broke about the Texans' negotiations and that O'Brien told him he wasn't leaving Penn State? Well, that may not have been the case exactly, as seen in this article by Audrey Snyder of Penn Live:
Holley reached out to O’Brien on Saturday, but Sunday afternoon the player said the coach did not tell him for sure that he’d return to Penn State.
"He just gave me an idea of what to look for next year and said possibly he’s returning but I don’t know what’s going to happen," Holley said. "It wasn’t a guarantee, but he said it’s possible but I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m kind of sitting back waiting to see what happens. If he does leave I’ll wait to get to that bridge and cross it then."
Recall that a lot has been made about whether O'Brien promised his earlier recruits that he'd stay at Penn State for some period of time. The player most often mentioned in connection with that promise is true freshman QB Christian Hackenberg. O'Brien also spoke with Hackenberg after the story about him negotiating with the Texans came out on Saturday, and Hackenberg's father then spoke to Penn Live:
"Coach has talked to Christian and they’ve had their own conversation, " Erick said. "He asked Christian for it to stay between the two of them so that’s what’s going to happen. ... He's talked to Bill and we’re comfortable with where it stands."
This next part is rather important, I'd say:
Erick said he can't recall whether or not O'Brien promised Christian that he'd be there for the duration of his career when he recruited him.
Interesting. So maybe O'Brien didn't make any promises about staying at Penn State. Or maybe he did!
One parent of a #PSU commit told me Bill O'Brien looked their son in the eye on his official & told him he'd be there through Hack's class.
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) December 31, 2013
Clearly as today rolls on we'll see if O'Brien was giving them the standard college football talk or not. I'm thinking it's the standard tho
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) December 31, 2013
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! Jason La Canfora, help me. I need you to soothe my jangled nerves.
Still every expectation Bill O'Brien is next HOU coach, but if it somehow went sideways, Lions (DET, not Nittany) would be ready to pounce
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) December 31, 2013
Well, that is not helpful at all. What is helpful, though? Reading some in-depth profiles about Bill O'Brien. After you've read this, this, and this, you might find it in your heart to be a bit more patient with O'Brien. There are a lot of factors at play here.
My keen sense of the situation is that no one knows what's going on. My guess as someone who does not know Bill O'Brien and is talking completely out of his arse is that O'Brien is genuinely torn. The players that committed to him at Penn State made a commitment unlike the normal college football player, given the circumstances surrounding the program when he arrived. His family likes the community. He's a good guy. He doesn't want to let anyone down. It's hard to reconcile those things with moving up the football food chain, even if being a head coach in the NFL is a dream of his.
For the record, I still believe Bill O'Brien is the next coach of your Houston Texans. And I'm willing to wait.