Penn State Sports Magazine
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6 J U N E / J U L 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 P enn State wide receivers coach Kashif Moore is still the new guy in the Lasch Building, having been added to the Nittany Lions' staff after Noah Pauley left for the NFL in Febru- ary. A former assistant coach at Con- necticut and a South Jersey standout as a player, Moore was still settling in with his new program this spring, but he got his message across to a re- built receivers group that is hoping to change the unit's trajectory after sev- eral difficult years. "Our identity is around three things," Moore explained during the final week of spring practice. "It's being the most selfless, explosive and toughest wide receiver corps in the country. That's what we're trying to build, and that's something that we're trying to display every single day in meetings and on the practice field." Moore's comments align closely with the views of the guy who hired him, Matt Campbell. Penn State's head coach was asked recently what sepa- rated Moore when the Lions suddenly found themselves with a vacancy to fill. "I think development was the key," Campbell said. "He's a guy who devel- oped himself into a great wide receiver, had a great playing career. And then you saw what he did with those guys at UConn. You watched some of those guys and what those guys were able to do at a place where development had to be the key to your success. "You've seen that early on [at Penn State]. I think that group has grown immensely, and he's a great developer of the wide receiver position." Development will be key for the Nit- tany Lions at every level of this posi- tion group. It features a pair of former Iowa State starters in redshirt senior Chase Sowell and junior Brett Eskild- sen, two talented redshirt freshmen who came along with Campbell in Zay Robinson and Karon Brookins, red- shirt sophomore Grambling transfer Keith Jones Jr., true freshmen Amarion Jackson and Ben Whitver and a hand- ful of holdovers from Penn State led by sophomores Koby Howard and Peter Gonzalez and redshirt freshman Lyrick Samuel. With so many new faces to coach up, Moore started cramming on the film before he even got to Happy Valley. Right away, the game clips from Sowell and Eskildsen got his attention. "When you look at guys like Chase and Brett, who have a bunch of reps that I can watch, you saw big-play ability," Moore said. "You saw explo- sive playmaking in the Big 12 that I think will translate to this level. Those guys can play ball. I'm excited to coach those guys up and see them take their game to the next level." What's behind Moore's belief that Big 12 production will carry over to the Big Ten? "I would say the mindset. These guys are willing, they want to make plays, they want to continuously get better," Moore said. "That's a day-to-day pro- cess. We're trying to find ways to get better. Whether it's watching film or extra workouts, there are little nuances of the game. Those guys are pretty highly developed already, with Chase being a senior, so it's just minor tweaks to his game that we can add." Moore also had a chance to check out some Penn State tape from the fall, and Howard got his attention quickly. He made plays this spring as he continues to round into a more consistent threat for the Nittany Lions. "Koby was a guy that stuck out to me — a playmaker who can play multiple positions," Moore said. "He's highly competitive and just wants to be great. And he's been doing a really good job this spring. "From Koby, I see explosiveness and twitch. He knows how to play physical, too. He's not our biggest receiver, but I think that when you can play big, that allows you to have position flexibility where you can play both in the slot and the outside." With Sowell and Eskildsen limited this spring due to injuries, another former Iowa State player got increased reps in camp for Penn State. "You have guys like Zay Robinson, who flies around and makes plays. He's a high football IQ guy," Moore said. "All of those guys are very will- ing, and that's what's most important. They want to be great. They want to be coached hard. "Karon Brookins is a heck of a tal- ent. Another South Jersey guy who I recruited when I was at UConn. Great frame, great playmaking ability. Speed and fluid hips. He wants to get better, I'm really excited about him as well." ■ Kashif Moore took charge of Penn State's receivers room after Noah Pauley left in February to join the Green Bay Packers' staff. PHOTO BY RYAN SNYDER New Assistant Gives PSU's Receivers A Helping Hand JUDGMENT CALL O P I N I O N SEAN FITZ SEAN.FITZ@ON3.COM