Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1543434
M A R C H 2 0 2 6 2 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / T H E B I G P I C T U R E / / / / / / / his mobility to extend plays when protec- tion breaks down." CBS Sports didn't list Penn State as one of its portal winners, but it did cite the Cyclones as one of the teams that was hit the hardest, asserting that "almost every good player on Iowa State's roster departed upon Matt Campbell's exit to Penn State." Finding The Right Guys While Penn State brought in more play- ers than Indiana and Ohio State com- bined, it didn't restock its roster indis- criminately. One of the guiding principles of Campbell's rebuild was that he didn't want to take players just to take players. Instead, he wanted athletes who would fit the team's positional needs and could be counted on to help establish the kind of culture that had turned Iowa State into a perennial overachiever in the Big 12. Players like Becht, Hansen and Ebel personify the mindset that the new staff is looking to instill. All were three-star recruits when they came to Iowa State. Hansen was listed in the On3 Industry Ranking as the nation's No. 270 overall prospect when he chose the Cyclones over Kansas State, while Ebel was No. 577 overall, picking Iowa State over Iowa. Becht made perhaps the biggest jump of all, starting out as the No. 625 overall prospect and No. 88 player in Florida be- fore developing into a three-year starter with the Cyclones. Listed as the No. 33 overall player in the portal this year, he's one of college football's most productive returning quarterbacks, with 9,274 ca- reer passing yards, 64 touchdowns and 26 wins as a starter. Last season, he played with a torn labrum in his left shoulder that required painkillers just to practice, yet he didn't miss a single start. "He's as tough and competitive as any football player I've ever been around," Campbell said. "He brings those traits with him." Campbell also noted that Becht main- tained a 3.6 grade-point average in Iowa State's business school. Bringing in those kinds of players will be a boon to Penn State this coming season and beyond, Campbell said. "Where I thought we did a really great job is making sure that not only were we finding the right guys but making sure that once we built the team it was the right human beings that fit us," he said. "I think what has helped us, whether we were at Toledo or Iowa State or here, is clearly defining what you're looking for — not only as a human being but also posi- tionally, and then recruiting to those value systems. I think that's helped us a lot." ■ PENN STATE TRANSFER PORTAL ADDITIONS QUARTERBACK Name Elig. Ht. Wt. Transferred From Rocco Becht R-Sr. 6-1 210 Iowa State Alex Manske R-Fr. 6-3 225 Iowa State RUNNING BACK Carson Hansen Sr. 6-2 220 Iowa State James Peoples Jr. 5-10 206 Ohio State WIDE RECEIVER Karon Brookins R-Fr. 6-5 200 Iowa State Brett Eskildsen Jr. 6-1 200 Iowa State Keith Jones Jr. R-So. 6-4 208 Grambling Zay Robinson R-Fr. 5-11 185 Iowa State Chase Sowell R-Sr. 6-3 210 Iowa State TIGHT END Cooper Alexander R-So. 6-4 245 Iowa State Benjamin Brahmer Sr. 6-7 255 Iowa State Gabe Burkle R-Sr. 6-6 255 Iowa State OFFENSIVE LINE Trevor Buhr R-Jr. 6-4 325 Iowa State Tyshon Huff R-Jr. 6-4 300 Tiffin University (D-II) Vaea Ikakoula R-Fr. 6-3 355 Iowa State Kuol Kuol II R-Fr. 6-6 290 Iowa State Brock Riker R-So. 6-4 285 Texas State Will Tompkins R-Fr. 6-5 300 Iowa State DEFENSIVE END Ike Ezeogu R-Sr. 6-5 285 Iowa State Alexander McPherson So. 6-6 240 Colorado DEFENSIVE TACKLE Alijah Carnell R-So. 6-5 290 Iowa State Armstrong Nnodim R-So. 6-2 290 Oklahoma State Siale Taupaki R-Sr.+ 6-2 310 UCLA Dallas Vakalahi Jr. 6-2 318 Utah Keanu Williams R-Sr. 6-5 320 UCLA LINEBACKER Caleb Bacon R-Sr. 6-4 240 Iowa State Cael Brezina Jr. 6-3 235 Iowa State Kooper Ebel Sr. 6-4 235 Iowa State Chris Fileppo So. 6-4 208 West Virginia John Klosterman R-Sr. 5-11 230 Iowa State CORNERBACK Ibn McDaniels R-So. 6-3 205 Syracuse SAFETY Jeremiah Cooper R-Sr. 6-0 195 Iowa State Omarion Davis So. 5-11 185 Boston College Marcus Neal Jr. Jr. 6-1 215 Iowa State Jamison Patton Sr. 6-2 210 Iowa State PUNTER Nathan Tiyce So. 6-5 230 Mississippi State PLACEKICKER Cristiano Rosa R-Sr. 5-11 206 James Madison