Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547107
1 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 They Said It "They controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides today. The frustrating thing for me is the standard that this program plays football with — the attitude, the effort, the toughness — we lacked it in every way, shape and form tonight. I put a lot of that on me." — Penn State head coach Matt Campbell, reflecting on the Lions' loss to Northwest- ern, a game in which his team was out- gained by 215 yards "Six days after blowing a 17-point lead at home to Wisconsin, the Nittany Lions (3-2, 0-2) allowed a staggering 413 rushing yards in a 34-13 debacle at Northwestern. … Rocket fuel for rival fans — and a faction of skepti- cal Penn State fans — who considered Iowa State's all-time winningest coach to be in over his head at a national championship aspirant. … [Patrick] Kraft — who gave the coach a fully guaranteed $70.5 million con- tract (yes, they still do that) — is in hot water with the fan base for several reasons. … He really needs Campbell to turn things around quickly. It might not be possible with that defense." — Stewart Mandel, columnist for The Ath- letic, on Penn State's struggles in the Big Ten season "The Nittany Lions have played 11 Big Ten Conference games in 2025 and '26 with a desultory record of 3-8. Under three head coaches: James Franklin was 0-3 (he made $8.5 million.) Terry Smith was 3-3 (he made a lot less). And Campbell is 0-2 (he's guaran- teed $8.8 million per year). No wonder Penn State fans are up in arms." — Mike Poorman, StateCollege.com col- umnist "For better or worse, Penn State is a results- oriented business. In fact, it is quite literally a business that derives its primary source of income from the ability to win games. It's a business that has to put butts in seats, sell TV contracts, land apparel deals and gener- ate national relevance both athletically and academically. Football is the front porch to all that. "Penn State fans might have an inflated sense of exceptionalism, but there's too much money, too many stakeholders and too many successful seasons to set the bar at trying real hard. … For whatever flaws you might ascribe to James Franklin, that was a point he always understood." — Ben Jones, SI.com columnist "I think that we're growing each and every week; that's what I'm seeing. At the end of the day, we've just got to keep going and not see any decrease in our pass rush. We've just got to keep going." — Redshirt senior edge rusher Ikenna Ezeogu on Penn State's pass rush, which had produced just 8 sacks through six games "We're going to have to find ways to get them the ball and easier ways to at least make those throws. I still don't think we've sniffed just how good that room can be. But from an attitude and effort standpoint, it's pretty good. I have to do a better job of giv- ing those guys the ball." — Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser on the Nittany Lions' tight ends, who col- lectively had caught 40 passes for 404 yards through six games "What excites me is to be able to play for my home state and to play for a program that has great history and culture. They have a history of having great defensive players come through and go to the NFL. I know how great the alumni and fan base is, and to be able to play in front of over 100,000 would be pretty cool." — Malvern (Pa.) Prep edge rusher George Parkinson IV, a consensus four-star prospect in the 2028 recruiting class, following his visit to Penn State for the Wisconsin game PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL "We've got to be better. I know that sounds cliched, and we keep saying it, but that's the wisdom we've got to give ourselves. We've got to be better. That wasn't Penn State football. The Penn State brand is tough, physical and dominating the opponent. That's what we've got to do." — Redshirt senior quarterback Rocco Becht following the Nittany Lions' 34-13 loss at Northwestern on Oct. 2