Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545675
5 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 STARTER ★★★★ Senior Benjamin Brahmer was one of Penn State's most important transfer acquisitions this year and will be a big part of what the Nittany Lions want to be on offense. He's a massive, movable chess piece who is fully healthy and will be deployed by offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser in ways that should create matchup problems for oppos- ing defenses. At 6-foot-7, 250 pounds, Brahmer is a highly versatile offensive threat. During his junior season at Iowa State, he lined up as an in-line tight end (324 snaps), in the slot (168) and split out wide (90). Having 90 snaps at wide receiver is an incredibly high number for a tight end. In fact, it was the most of any Power Four tight end last year. Brahmer may not be the complete pack- age athletically, but his deficiencies don't diminish his performance as an explosive receiving threat. He'll be a big part of Penn State's downfield passing attack this fall. EXPERIENCE ★★★★ Brahmer saw action in 33 games during his three years at Iowa State. He's joined in Penn State's tight end corps by two other ex- perienced players — redshirt junior Andrew Rappleyea, who has played in 17 games in his career to date, and redshirt senior Iowa State transfer Gabe Burkle, who has played in 38. The Lions have been fortunate in recent years to have always had a veteran leading this crucial position group, whether it was Brenton Strange, Theo Johnson, Tyler War- ren or Khalil Dinkins. PSU had to dip into the transfer portal this year to get its numbers back up, but that streak continues with Brah- mer and Rappleyea set to assume leadership roles. DEPTH ★★★★ It looks as though the Nittany Lions are going to rely heavily on 12-personnel looks (two tight ends) and will operate out of 13-personnel looks (three tight ends) at times this fall. That approach will require plenty of depth, and the Lions appear to have it. Brahmer, Burkle and Rappleyea have combined to make 39 starts, so there's a lot of experience to lean on. In addition, redshirt freshman Brian Kortovich and redshirt sophomore Cooper Alexander are young players who will have a chance to work their way into the rotation, while redshirt junior Finn Furmanek, a former walk-on from State College, is looking for an opportunity to contribute on offense after shining as a special teams player the past two years. OVERALL GRADE ★★★★ Mouser and key analyst Sam Seonbuchner, another Iowa State expat, have been called on to blend a trio of returnees with Iowa State newcomers. The Nittany Lions will be without last sea- son's snap leader at the position, Dinkins, who exhausted his eligibility. In addition, Luke Reynolds has joined James Franklin and former PSU tight ends coach Ty Howle at Virginia Tech after totaling 35 catches for 368 yards and 1 touchdown in two seasons with the Lions. Matt Henderson, a 2025 signee who did not play during his lone season in State College, is also off to Blacksburg, veteran backup Joey Schlaffer will be looking for playing time at Temple, and five-star prospect Andrew Olesh is at Oregon, where he will be a redshirt fresh- man this fall. Those departures have cleared the way for Rappleyea and Brahmer to figure promi- nently in an offense that will need major productivity from its tight ends, just as Iowa State did during Campbell's tenure in Ames. Burkle, Alexander and Kortovich should pro- vide solid depth, though the last two don't have much experience. BY THE NUMBERS 9.9 yards Benjamin Brahmer 's average depth of target last season. That figure ranked fifth nationally among tight ends with at least 30 targets. 5 Number of Penn State tight ends who started at least two regular-season games in the NFL last season. The list includes Mike Gesicki (two starts for the Cincinnati Bengals), Pat Freiermuth (eight, Pittsburgh Steelers), Brenton Strange (12, Jacksonville Jaguars), Tyler Warren (12, Indianapolis Colts) and Theo Johnson (15, New York Giants). In addition, former Penn State wide receiver Juwan Johnson made 10 starts at tight end for the New Orleans Saints. 10 Catches by Andrew Rappleyea in the last three games of Penn State's 2025 season. Of the 180 yards he amassed last fall, 97 came against Nebraska, Rutgers and Clemson, as did all 3 of his touchdown catches. Andrew Rappleyea was Penn State's sixth-leading receiver last year with 20 catches for 180 yards and 3 touchdowns. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS