Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547107
6 6 N O V E M B E R 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 S peaking four days before his foot- ball team lost to USC, 31-23, Penn State head coach Matt Campbell said his team lacked an identity. At this point, that simply is not true. The Nittany Lions don't have to like their current identity, but they do have one. At the midway point of the season, they were 3-3 and winless in three Big Ten games. Mediocre is an all-too- fitting word to describe the 2026 Nit- tany Lions six games into this college football season. There is little doubt that Campbell and his coaches want to be better. So do their players. But how much better can they get at this point? The offense cannot run the football consistently. Through three Big Ten games, Penn State had gained 235 yards on 89 carries, an average of 2.6 yards per attempt. It had scored 5 touch- downs and 4 field goals in 9 red zone trips and converted just 14 of 44 third downs. Turnovers have been costly during the three-game losing streak, too. Redshirt senior quarterback Rocco Becht was much better against USC than in the previous two games, com- pleting 21 of 32 passes for 289 yards versus the Trojans, with 1 touchdown and no interceptions. Still, the offense lacks consistency and does not produce enough big plays. Then there is the defense. Redshirt junior linebacker Tony Rojas remains the most dependable playmaker in coordinator D'Anton Lynn's group. Against USC, he made 10 tackles, forced a fumble and recorded Penn State's only sack. He cannot compen- sate for everyone else, though. The cornerbacks are still a strength, but the safeties have been a disappointment, and the pass rush generates little pres- sure. USC quarterback Jayden Maiava completed 21 of 33 passes for 301 yards and 3 touchdowns. This defense lacks speed and physicality, and there is little evidence that those problems will be resolved soon. "I don't know if we're going to change schematically who we are," Campbell said following the game. "What we have to do is continue to demand to get better. We have to con- tinue to improve what we are, what we're doing. … We're going to have to continue to pound away at it." There isn't much else for Campbell to say. But the repeated promises of improvement are becoming less per- suasive. Penn State fans' concerns about the rebuilt roster look increas- ingly justified. Campbell and his staff relied heavily on the transfer portal after they arrived in December. They had no choice given the mass exodus that followed James Franklin's dismissal and the departure of many of last year's best players to the NFL. If guard Olaivavega Ioane, running backs Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton and defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton were still suiting up for PSU, many of this year's most acute problem areas would look a lot less glaring. But, of course, those play- ers are gone, and in their place Penn State brought in 40 transfers and 15 high school signees, by far the biggest single-year roster overhaul in program history. Even amid the disappoint- ment of a season gone awry, there have been some suc- cess stories. Redshirt senior receiver Chase Sowell has been a pleasant surprise of late, and Becht has had his moments. But how many other transfers have con- sistently impressed? Aside from Rojas, sophomore wide receiver Koby Howard when healthy, the cornerbacks and redshirt junior kicker Ryan Barker, the returning players have not done much to distinguish themselves, either. Too many positions lack differ- ence-makers. Penn State was set to face Michigan in Ann Arbor on Oct. 17. The Nittany Lions went into the game with a 4-10 all-time record at Michigan Stadium, making it hard to feel optimistic about the chances of a U-turn, at least in the immediate future. The team may have played better against USC, but it was not good enough. And that might be the central problem with this team: Improvement alone may not produce victories. "We're not where we need to be yet, but we are growing forward, and we'll demand a pathway forward because we've got such a great fan base, and they deserve that," Campbell said. Penn State fans do deserve to have an exciting team to watch, having sup- ported the program faithfully for gen- erations. With half of the 2026 season now gone, the Nittany Lions are run- ning out of time to put the kind of prod- uct on the field that Campbell and the broader PSU community want to see. ■ O P I N I O N GREG PICKEL GREG.PICKEL@ON3.COM PSU Seeks Continued Growth, But The Clock Is Ticking THE LAST WORD Matt Campbell's first Penn State team reached the season's midpoint at 3-3 after a 31-23 loss to USC, its third consecutive defeat. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL