Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547107
1 0 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 ophomore wide receiver Koby Howard made an immediate im- pact on Penn State's offense this season. Through the Nittany Lions' first three games, he led the team with 12 catches for 344 yards and 2 touch- downs, averaging 28.7 yards per recep- tion. Howard sustained an unspecified in- jury in Penn State's 55-13 victory over Buffalo on Sept. 19 and will miss an "extended period of time," coach Matt Campbell said Sept. 23. The coach said the injury was not season-ending but did not provide a timetable for Howard's return. Penn State's first game without How- ard showed just how much he mattered to the Nittany Lions' offensive efforts. The team managed just 233 yards of to- tal offense in a 24-20 loss to Wisconsin on Sept. 26 at Beaver Stadium, falling to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in the Big Ten. Redshirt senior quarterback Rocco Becht completed only 12 of 29 passes for 114 yards, with 1 in- terception and no touchdown passes. Redshirt senior Chase Sow- ell was the only Penn State wide receiver to catch a pass against the Badgers, finishing with 6 receptions for 70 yards. Senior tight end Ben Brahmer added 4 catches for 36 yards, but three other wideouts — redshirt freshman Zay Robinson, junior Brett Eskildsen and freshman Amarion Jackson — finished without a recep- tion. The Lions produced just one play of 20 or more yards, a 22-yard catch by Sowell. That wasn't what Campbell and of- fensive coordinator Taylor Mouser had been hoping for when they began figur- ing out how they would replace Howard in the lineup. Campbell said the team had displayed a "next-man-up mental- ity" in the offseason and had carried it into the 2026 campaign. But the Lions weren't able to make the plays in the passing game that might have averted a come-from-ahead loss in a game that Penn State led 17-0 in the second quar- ter. The following week at Northwestern, Penn State's passing game was some- NEWS & NOTES A Key Injury Tests Penn State's Offensive Resilience N A T E B A U E R | N AT E . B A U E R @ O N 3 . C O M Koby Howard caught 12 passes for 344 yards and 2 touchdowns in Penn State's first three games before an injury against Buffalo sidelined him. Coach Matt Campbell said the injury was not season- ending. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL