Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544053
1 6 A P R I L 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 They Said It "Penn State was finally able to lure Matt Campbell away from Iowa State, and he could be poised for a big turnaround in Happy Val- ley. The Nittany Lions won their last four games to salvage a 7-6 campaign in 2026. Much of the roster followed [James] Franklin to Virginia Tech and ex-defensive coordina- tor Jim Knowles to Tennessee. But Campbell brought in 39 transfers, including two dozen from Iowa State. Quarterback Rocco Becht, tailback Carson Hansen, receiver Chase Sowell and tight end Benjamin Brahmer are plug-and- play starters on offense. The Nittany Lions don't play Indiana, Ohio State or Oregon in the regular season, so a 10-win season isn't out of the question." — Mark Schlabach, ESPN college football writer, advocating for Penn State as the team that will show the greatest improvement from last year "I say the strength of my game is my 'want to.' On the defensive side of the ball, you should want to make the play. You should want to make every play, and you should always be at the ball. I'd say that's the biggest part of my game. I want to make the play." — Junior safety Marcus Neal Jr., who transferred from Iowa State to Penn State in January "I wanted to hear what they had to say. I wanted to talk to them, see where their heads are at, and see what's going on, what their fu- ture plans are for this program. I feel like their plans are my plans — just to be a great player here and a future first-rounder, the top pick in the draft." — Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Malachi Goodman on his initial conversa- tions with head coach Matt Campbell and offensive line coach Ryan Clanton "It's nothing new for Penn State, so I think it just shows what we do. Everyone is consistent. Everyone lives the right lifestyle. The coaches are great. Everyone in the program just does their part, and great things happen when you do that." — Sophomore 184-pound wrestler Rocco Welsh after becoming one of seven Nittany Lions to win a Big Ten individual championship this year "I think as the days went on, weeks went on, I just started to have higher aspirations and higher goals. And I was just kind of thinking, if I want to be the best, I have to go where the best wrestlers are. That automatically put Penn State at the top of my list. "Once I decommitted, they reached out. I figured it was a no-brainer to get up there. I love the staff. I love everything about it. I'm just super excited to go up there." — Two-time PIAA Class AAA 215-pound champion Elijah Brown on his decision last fall to decommit from Pitt and join Penn State's 2026 wrestling class "[Coach Mike] Rhoades has already done some notable things at Penn State: landing the highest-rated recruit in program history, producing the first first-round draft pick in pro- gram history, producing the highest-scoring team in program history (79.1 points per game in 2024-25) and beating four conference op- ponents ranked in the top 15. "There's still a lot of work to be done, and this season was largely unacceptable — even by Penn State standards. But Rhoades has made it clear he's committed to doing that work, and his track record shows he's capable of it. More support, whether it's an increased NIL budget or higher attendance at home games, wouldn't hurt either. One down year — especially when the team was picked to finish last in the conference in the preseason — shouldn't erase that." — Joel Haas, StateCollege.com writer, calling for patience after a 12-20 season by the Penn State men's basketball team "As a team, it's going to the playoff, winning a natty. I want to win that before I leave. And for me personally, I just feel like I've still got some more [to show]. I've got another level I haven't reached yet." — Redshirt senior cornerback Audavion Collins on his goals for the 2026 season PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS