Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545675
8 2 A U G U S T 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 / / / / / / / 2 0 2 6 F O O T B A L L P R E V I E W / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / PRESEASON ANALYSIS ★★★★★ National Title; ★★★★ Top 10; ★★★ Top 25; ★★ Too Unproven; ★ Major Concern STARTERS ★★★ Redshirt junior Ryan Barker has repeatedly come up big for Penn State, including a 3-for-3 performance to help the Lions beat Clem- son in the Pinstripe Bowl. He's been a five- star specialist, but there have been a lot of changes elsewhere, so it would be premature to rate these units as national title-worthy. EXPERIENCE ★★★ Barker seized control of the kicking position early in the 2024 season after Sander Sahay- dak's struggles prompted the coaching staff to give him a shot. As for the newcomers, redshirt senior Cris- tiano Rosa has two seasons under his belt as James Madison's kickoff specialist, and senior defensive back Zion Tracy appears set to return punts again after giving way to Trebor Peña and Devonte Ross last year. Tracy aver- aged 5.8 yards on 15 attempts in 2024. The punter will either be largely or entirely untested at the college level, depending on whether sophomore Nathan Tiyce or true freshman Lucas Tenbrock wins the job in preseason camp. DEPTH ★★★ There's no proven depth behind Barker, with Rosa and redshirt freshman Matthew Parker having attempted just 1 field goal and 5 extra points between them. That's hardly unusual, though. Rare is the team with two proven kickers. One area in which the Lions appear to have a multitude of options is on kickoff returns. Sophomore receiver Koby Howard, senior run- ning back Carson Hansen and junior running back James Peoples all auditioned during the Blue-White Practice in April. Hansen averaged 17.2 yards on 5 attempts while playing for Iowa State in 2023. Peoples had a 20-yard re- turn on his only attempt as a running back at Ohio State last year. OVERALL GRADE ★★★ Barker's decision to refrain from exploring his transfer options in January was surely a relief to head coach Matt Campbell. The Nit- tany Lions may have some question marks elsewhere in the kicking game, but they've got a reliable performer at this crucial position. The Lions are also bringing back special teams coordinator Justin Lustig for his third season. Lustig was the only one of PSU's three coordinators to be retained by Campbell, and understandably so considering that Penn State's kicking game was the most consistently effective facet of the team in an otherwise disappointing 2025 season. There's every reason to believe Lustig can shape a largely rebuilt specialist corps into one of this team's biggest assets. But until we see it on the field, we've got to go with a three- star grade. 2025 vs. 2026: Stock Up Or Down? The Nittany Lions have one of the best kickers in the Big Ten, which is a pretty good starting point. Redshirt junior Ryan Barker has hit 33 of 37 field goal attempts and 92 of 94 PATs in his two seasons. But unless the Lions tap Barker to handle kickoffs, too — an unlikely scenario since they brought in an experienced kickoff specialist in redshirt senior Cristiano Rosa — they'll have someone new handling every other facet of the kicking game. Given all the changes, it would be hard to say these units are trending up. But coordi- nator Justin Lustig has done an outstanding job in his two seasons at PSU, so there's no cause for alarm, either. This is one of those buy-and-hold stocks. X-Factor Who will be the punter? And will he match Gabriel Nwosu's performance last year, which included 11 punts of 50 or more yards and a 46-yard average that ranked second in the Big Ten? For now, all we know is that the starter will definitely be new to PSU, with true freshman Lucas Tenbrock and Mississippi State transfer Nathan Tiyce set to battle for the job in preseason camp. Freshman Outlook Tenbrock of St. Charles (Ill.) North High impressed Matt Campbell with his ability to perform in the less-than-ideal field conditions for which Midwestern football is known. "He's got great ability," Campbell said when Tenbrock signed with Iowa State in Decem- ber. "He's got great potential." Having followed Campbell to PSU, Tenbrock will now have to deal primarily with North- eastern weather, which is no picnic either. And he may find himself having to deal with it sooner rather than later, depending on how his battle with Tiyce goes. Players (7) PLACEKICKER No. Player Yr. Ht. Wt. 94 Ryan Barker R-Jr. 6-2 198 98 Matthew Parker R-Fr. 6-0 222 95 Cristiano Rosa R-Sr. 5-11 208 PUNTER — Lucas Tenbrock Fr. 6-6 210 38 Nathan Tiyce So. 6-5 229 LONG SNAPPER 92 Andrew Dufault R-So. 6-1 248 35 Blaise Sokach-Minnick R-Sr. 6-3 218 Ryan Barker converted 3 of 3 field goal attempts in Penn State's season-ending victory over Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS