Penn State Sports Magazine
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3 0 D E C 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 P enn State's 28-25 victory at Washington on Nov. 7 illus- trated both the promise and the frustration of its offense. Dur- ing a 303-yard, 28-point first half, coordinator Taylor Mouser's attack produced touchdowns through the air and on the ground. After half- time, the Nittany Lions went score- less and allowed a comfortable lead to become a tense finish. The offense still has too many stretches in which it struggles to sustain drives. But after a 31-17 vic- tory over Purdue and a win in Seat- tle, it also has evidence of progress. Against Washington, the Lions pro- tected a three-point lead by keep- ing the ball for more than half of the fourth quarter. "I think we just came out confi- dent," redshirt senior quarterback Rocco Becht said. "We came out with a sense of urgency. We had to fly out here six hours and come out here and demand a win for us. I think it was us against everyone, and that's our mentality every single week. But we just came out confident, and I think that's what we ex- ecuted in the first half. They made changes in the sec- ond half, but we were still confident and stayed in it un- til the end of that drive and ended up on our terms." He re 's a p os i - tion-by-position look at how Penn S t a t e 's o f f e n s e fared over the past month. Quarterback Despite uneven play and the question of what Penn State has in redshirt fresh- man backup Alex Manske, this remains Becht's offense. Through nine games, he had thrown for 2,079 yards while com- pleting 62.8 percent of his passes, with 15 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Against Washington, he finished 16 of 27 for 240 yards and 2 touchdowns without an in- terception. His late contributions were on the ground. Becht picked up a third-and-6 with a 9-yard run on the final posses- sion, then converted fourth-and-1 at the Washington 3 with a 2-yard gain. Those plays helped Penn State finish with kneel-downs instead of giving the Huskies another chance. Head coach Matt Campbell's faith in his veteran quarterback was rewarded when the Lions most needed to hold onto the ball and avoid putting their defense back on the field. "We made great growth today. Hopefully the writing on the quar- terback will be a lot better today than maybe it has been," Campbell said in Seattle. "But the reality is that guy gives you poise. That's why that guy is really special. When it matters the most, that guy always gives you a chance to win the game. He has all year, and he did it again tonight." Running Back PSU entered its late-October bye week averaging 130.7 rushing yards per game. The Lions responded with 269 against Purdue, more than dou- bling that average, as redshirt junior Cam Wallace assumed a larger role. Wallace rushed for a career-high 135 yards against the Boilermakers and added 56 at Washington, includ- ing a 46-yard touchdown. Across those two victories, he carried 29 times for 191 yards and 2 touchdowns, averaging 6.6 yards per attempt. S e n i o r C a r s o n Hansen remained a substantial part of the offense. After rushing for 96 yards a g a i n s t P u r d u e , he led the Lions at Washington with 119 yards and a touch- down on 14 carries. His 36-yard burst on the final possession helped Penn State move into scoring territory while draining the clock. Junior James Peoples had no carries in either victory. Wallace and Hansen ac- counted for all 60 carries by Penn State running backs across the two games, making the change in the rotation clear without establishing why Peoples' role had diminished. "I think up front we were just more physical than we've ever been in the run PROGRESS REPORT OFFENSE Nittany Lions make headway but still struggle with inconsistency G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G . P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M Quarterback Rocco Becht threw for 240 yards and 2 touchdowns in Penn State's 28-25 win at Washington, and he helped secure the victory with a fourth-down conversion on the ground. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS