Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541990
2 8 J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M the quarterback by alignment and assign- ment. Instead, the defensive philosophy is to use chaotic blitzing to get free runners at the quarterback. There is a boom-or-bust quality to Iowa State's defensive approach. The lack of size and traditional run fits up front from defensive linemen can lead to ex- plosive plays when the blitz doesn't match the offensive call. It's hard to separate tal- ent from scheme, but if we look at the Cyclones compared to Big Ten defenses as a whole, we can see how this plan shakes out in Penn State's conference. Since 2022, Iowa State has allowed an explosive play on 15.1 percent of op- ponents' rushes, which would rank 16th among Big Ten teams, despite the Cy- clones' relative success in the Big 12. Con- versely, they would rank fourth in tackles for loss or no gain during that span. For comparison, Penn State is second in tackles for loss and seventh in explo- sive play percentage (12.7) since 2022. There's a legitimate question about whether this style would even work in the Big Ten, which features many fu- Putting players into the NFL is the name of the game in college football. It's the easiest way to get high school players to buy into your program. Given that Iowa State is rarely among the na- tion's top teams when it comes to the recruiting rankings, the quantity and quality of the pro- gram's draftees is impressive. From 1990 to 2018, the Cyclones had 23 players drafted. In only six of those years did they have more than one player chosen. Since 2019, when the first of Campbell's recruits started becoming draft-eligible, they've had 15 players selected. It's clear that he has an eye for talent. The headliner here is quarterback Brock Purdy, who was Mr. Irrelevant — the final player picked — in the 2022 draft and has since gone on to be- come a star with the San Francisco 49ers. Purdy was a four-year starter with the Cyclones, setting school records with his 12,170 passing yards and 81 touchdown tosses. He went on to start five games as a rookie with the 49ers and led the league with a 113.0 passer rating the following year, guiding San Francisco to the Super Bowl and earning a Pro Bowl nod. One caveat with respect to Iowa State's develop- ment of NFL-caliber players is that the program has not had much stability at the strength coach position. When Campbell left Toledo for Iowa State in 2016, strength coach Rudy Wade followed him to Ames. Wade's contract was not renewed after the 2019 season, and he was replaced by Dave Andrews the following year. In 2022, Camp- bell fired Andrews and longtime offensive coordi- nator Tom Manning after a 4-8 season. Reid Kagy took charge of the weight room when Andrews was let go. Penn State head strength coach Chuck Losey is expected to follow James Franklin to Virginia Tech. While some fans may not realize it, the stability of the transition from Dwight Galt to Losey was a foundational aspect of Penn State's success under Franklin. Beyond the players' performance at the NFL Scouting Combine, the team's lack of soft- tissue injuries directly relates to elite training in the weight room. — Thomas Frank Carr Campbell Has Developed NFL-Caliber Talent Brock Purdy was a four-year starter at Iowa State before going on to become a star with the San Francisco 49ers. PHOTO COURTESY SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS