John Haneline helped storied Football Championship Subdivision program Youngstown State return to the 2025 FCS Playoffs.
Coordinating the Penguins defense, he was in charge of a unit that tallied 24 sacks and a dozen interceptions during an eight-win 2025 campaign that ended with a stunning loss to Yale in the opening round of the FCS Playoffs.
The Penguins had enjoyed leads of 35-7 and 42-14 before Yale stormed back to claim an 43-42 victory.
Haneline won't engineer a revenge tour for the Penguins in 2026. Instead, he's poised to get a major opportunity at the Football Bowls Subdivision level.
Sources tell FootballScoop that Haneline is departing Youngstown State to accept an on-field, defensive coaching position on Dell McGee's Georgia State football staff.
Though his primary coaching experience has been at the FCS level, Haneline does have previous FBS work -- and in a Power Conference. He was a defensive quality control coach at Southeastern Conference program Mississippi State under Dan Mullen in 2016-17.
In addition to his time at Youngstown State, the Bowling Green graduate Haneline has coaching chops from time on staff at Western Illinois as well as Toledo, among other stops.
McGee is overhauling his defense after making massive changes earlier this week, as first reported by FootballScoop. McGee dismissed both his defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator in the aftermath of the Panthers' 1-11 season.
Georgia State is just 4-20 in two seasons with McGee at the helm.
The Panthers are scheduled to open Year 3 under McGee against FCS program North Carolina A&T before a short trip to battle Jerry Mack's Kennesaw State Owls, who were one of college football's most surprising, break-through teams in 2025 with their 10-win season that included the Conference USA Championship.