Penn State fans have spent years waiting for a true homegrown wideout to break through, and Koby Howard is the name carrying that hope into fall camp. The buzz around him is already building after the first open practice, with reports pointing to Howard as a possible favorite target for quarterback Rocco Becht.
But the path to a real breakout is not as clean as it looks from the outside.
Howard barely got on the field last season, drawing just nine targets and finishing with seven catches for 133 yards. Four of those targets came in Penn State’s Pinstripe Bowl win over Clemson.
After a year in which Penn State again came up empty at receiver, there’s obvious excitement about what Howard might become. Still, the way Taylor Mouser wants to run this offense could make his rise more difficult than fans want to believe.
Howard has the kind of traits that get people talking. He can threaten defenses vertically with speed, and he has the short-area quickness to make defenders miss once the ball is in his hands.
At 5-foot-11 and 203 pounds, though, he is expected to work mostly from the slot for now. Chase Sowell, at 6-foot-3, and Brett Eskildsen, at 6-foot-1, offer different body types on the outside, and Howard’s long-term future is projected to be there eventually.
Right now, though, the slot looks like his most likely home.
That’s where the complication starts.
Mouser’s offense has a clear lean toward tight ends, and not just in a small way. At Iowa State last season, tight ends logged 1,786 snaps, while wide receivers totaled 1,633.
Tyler Moore, the Cyclones’ third tight end, nearly matched Sowell’s snap count from the receiver room, and Benjamin Brahmer and Gabe Burkle both played more than Sowell and Eskildsen. Brahmer was also the primary slot option.
That kind of usage tells you exactly what Mouser values. With Brahmer, Burkle, and Andrew Rappleyea now available, there’s little reason to think that approach is changing.
Penn State is bringing back the sort of heavy-personnel structure that has become more common across college football, with 12 and 13 personnel on the rise as teams try to force defenses into bigger alignments and heavier boxes. Mouser has already been ahead of that trend. Iowa State’s tight ends were not just part of the offense - they were central to it.
There is one wrinkle from last season worth noting. Mouser’s 2024 passing game looked different because Iowa State had one of the best receiver tandems in the country in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel.
Both became Day 2 NFL Draft picks, and Noel led the slot while both receivers topped 1,000 yards. Even then, Burkle and Brahmer still had meaningful roles.
That is the hurdle for Howard. He has to win targets over Sowell and Eskildsen, and he also has to fight for snaps in an offense built to feature tight ends. Penn State may have the personnel to make that style work, especially with a deep running back group, but it does not automatically create a big statistical runway for Howard.
In Other News...
Penn State Opens Camp With One Big Offensive Stability Test
Penn State opened preseason camp under new head coach Matt Campbell with a roster that already looks very different from the one he inherited. Campbell arrived in December after 10 seasons at Iowa State, and the first days of practice have been as much about sorting out depth as installing the next phase of the program. With 40 transfers in the mix, there is no shortage of bodies to sort through, and the staff is taking a close look at key spots all over the field.
The most immediate question is whether the offense can find some stability behind the scenes, especially with a backup running back battle unfolding and young tackles and wide receivers being asked to grow up quickly. Quarterback Rocco Becht is participating in practice, and redshirt freshman Alex Manske is also back on the field, giving the staff more options as it tries to build a workable two-deep. For a team still taking shape under a new coach, those early camp reps may end up mattering just as much as the headline names. [Read more 🡒]
Penn States Coaching Wait Suddenly Feels Worth It
Penn States long coaching search finally ended with a name that immediately shifted the mood around the program. After moving on from James Franklin following the 2025 season, the Nittany Lions landed Matt Campbell, and the reaction from around college football has been notably upbeat. Kirk Herbstreit was among those applauding the move, calling it an incredible decision and pointing to Campbell as the kind of coach who can give the program a fresh direction.
The fit is part of what makes the hire resonate in State College. Campbell arrives with a reputation for building tough, organized teams, and Penn State also has the kind of experienced roster that can help a new staff get traction quickly. The bigger question now is how fast all of that turns into results, but for a fan base that has waited through the uncertainty of a coaching change, the early signs around this one have been encouraging. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Has A Comeback Story That Could Lift Its Tight Ends
Andrew Rappleyeas path has already given Penn State an encouraging subplot at tight end, and it comes at a position the Nittany Lions could use as a steadying force. After emerging as a real factor in the passing game late in 2023, when he found the end zone multiple times, Rappleyeas momentum was interrupted by a season-ending injury in the 2024 opener. Still, his return to the rotation in 2025 showed why the staff had reason to be patient with a redshirt junior whose role had been trending up.
Rappleyea is now part of a deeper, more interesting picture heading into 2026, with Luke Reynolds and Khalil Dinkins already in the mix and Iowa State transfers Ben Brahmer and Gabe Burkle joining the competition. The result is a position battle that could push Penn State toward a stronger all-around tight end room, and Rappleyeas comeback gives that storyline a built-in edge. If he can keep building on what he showed before the injury, the Lions may have one more productive option in an offense that has room for it. [Read more 🡒]