Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544053
A P R I L 2 0 2 6 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M "Wherever I was going to go, [it was im- portant to] get the lay of the land, and get back out there on the field for my new team and for my new teammates." Becht said his throwing shoulder is fully healed and his opposite shoulder isn't far behind. When he spoke to re- porters on Feb. 23, he was slated to begin throwing later that day. It was only 10 to 20 tosses, but it marked another step in the right direction. "The process has been going really well," Becht said. "The shoulders are feeling great — right shoulder is fully healthy, and the left shoulder is almost there. I'm expecting to be [ready to play] for over half of spring ball." Campbell and quarterbacks coach Jake Waters were clearly looking to take it slowly with Becht's return to action. Aside from the projected starter, there is very little experience in Penn State's quarterbacks room this spring. Becht's fellow Iowa State transfer, Alex Manske, is a redshirt freshman, while Kase Evans and Peyton Falzone are true freshmen. Walk-on transfer Connor Barry was brought in to supply depth, but nearly all of his collegiate experience has been at the Division III level. Becht was planning to spend the first portion of spring drills helping Manske and the other young signal-callers get acclimated. That could end up being the hidden upside of Becht's absence. "It changes the spring," Waters said. "He probably will be able to do some stuff about halfway through, throw- ing-wise — routes on air, maybe some seven-on-seven, but he won't get con- tact or anything like that. "But it gives the other guys a great chance to get a ton of reps. They would still get a lot, but now with Rocco out, great. Get thrown into the fire, learn, grow, fail, do great, fail again, and just learn. … We've got to get them up to speed as best we can." Becht isn't the only Nittany Lion who's out of action for some or all of Penn State's spring drills. Redshirt ju- nior offensive lineman Anthony Donkoh underwent a medical procedure that will keep him out of practice, though a Penn State spokesperson said he's ex- pected to be back in time for preseason camp. As recently as late February, Donkoh told reporters he was looking forward to spring practice and working under new offensive line coach Ryan Clanton. After playing both tackle and guard to start his PSU career, he was set to focus on the former position this spring. "There's a lot of meat left on the bone for me. I've not even reached my full potential," Donkoh said. "Personally, I love playing tackle. Tackle is just fun because I can play the way I want to play. I felt like playing guard, I was very constricted a lot of times and not able to play to my strengths. But at the end of the day, I was going to play whatever position I needed to play, and I was go- ing to play at a high level." Donkoh has started 21 games as a Nittany Lion, including 11 last year. He was on the field for 693 offensive snaps, playing mostly right guard but also fill- ing in at right tackle. In addition to Donkoh, redshirt junior tight end Andrew Rappleyea is out of action while dealing with a foot injury. Rappleyea recently posted a photo on Instagram in which he was seen lying on a couch with a cast covering his right foot. Sources told BWI that he will miss spring practice but is expected to return to training this summer. Other injured players include redshirt junior linebacker Tony Rojas, redshirt senior tight end Gabe Burkle and red- shirt senior safety Jeremiah Cooper. Rojas, who suffered a season-ending injury in practice on Sept. 30, said he is "crushing rehab" with the intention of re- turning to full participation this summer. Burkle suffered an ACL injury last season and had surgery in November. He intends to be back for fall camp in late July. Cooper also said he will be back for the season after suffering a torn ACL in practice during the final week of Sep- tember at Iowa State. ■ Trace McSorley Leaves Nittany Lions For NFL Job Trace McSorley, the record-setting former Penn State quarterback who returned to his alma mater to work with the team's signal- callers, has left to join the Buffalo Bills' staff. The move reunites McSorley with the Bills' new head coach, Joe Brady, who served as a graduate assistant with the Lions in 2015 and '16. Elevated from offensive coordina- tor to head coach in Buffalo this offseason, Brady is now bringing McSorley aboard as an offensive assistant. The news came just three weeks after head coach Matt Campbell had been asked about the significance of McSorley's reten- tion. The former PSU great was set to as- sist quarterbacks coach Jake Waters while helping Iowa State transfer Rocco Becht get acclimated in State College. "I think Trace is just starting to see how special his career could be," Campbell said. "In my mind, I kept thinking about how him and Rocco have very similar traits — the hu- man being and what they're about and the impact that he could have in a positive way on Rocco. "There have been times when I've gone to Trace [and asked], 'What have you seen? Give me your thoughts on what's gone well, what hasn't gone well, how we move ourselves forward.' I think those have been huge wins for us." McSorley spent five seasons in the NFL before returning to the Nittany Lions as assistant quarterbacks coach in February 2025. — Nate Bauer McSorley came back to Penn State in February 2025 after spending five seasons in the NFL. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS