San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Roman is a finalist to replace Joe Paterno at Penn State, his agent said Monday.
Mike Harrison told The Associated Press by phone that Roman interviewed for the position in November and is on the "short list" to take over the embattled program, which was rocked in recent months by a sex-abuse scandal involving former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.
Harrison said he expects to know soon if Roman will be hired, but he declined to offer further details, such as if his client would finish out the season with the playoff-bound NFC West champion 49ers (13-3). San Francisco is the NFC's No. 2 seed and earned a first-round bye, with its first game Jan. 14 at Candlestick Park.
"We should know in a week or so, that's our best guess," said Harrison, of the Los Angeles-based agency Advantage Sports & Entertainment. "He interviewed quite a while ago."
Penn State's season came to an end Monday with a 30-14 loss to Houston in the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas.
Harrison said Roman -- who came to the 49ers from Stanford along with coach Jim Harbaugh last year -- was offered the Tulane job to replace Bob Toledo. The school hired New Orleans Saints receivers coach Curtis Johnson last month.
NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora reported last Thursday that New England Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien was among the candidates being considered at Penn State. Acting athletic director David Joyner said Monday there isn't anybody who could be classified as a leading candidate in its nearly two-month-long search for a football coach.
The program has been without a permanent head coach since Nov. 9, when university trustees fired Hall of Famer Paterno in the aftermath of child sex abuse charges against Sandusky, who's awaiting trial and pleaded not guilty after waiving a preliminary court hearing last month.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
