Penn State opened the season with a statement that was hard to miss. The Nittany Lions rolled past Marshall 45-0 on Saturday, and in the process they answered a lot of the questions that had been hanging over them since the offseason.
But one win doesn’t clear everything up. As Penn State turns its attention to Temple in Week 2, there are still a handful of things worth tracking closely, from how the group handles success to whether the offense can find more balance.
The first test is mental, not physical. After a shutout like that, it would be easy for the Nittany Lions to start believing the headlines and lose a little edge.
That may sound like an overcautious concern, but it’s a real one. They’ll spend the week hearing how good they looked, and Matt Campbell will have to keep the room focused on Temple instead of the praise coming from outside.
There’s also the possibility that Penn State climbs in the AP Poll after a weekend that saw a few ranked teams stumble. If that happens, the attention gets louder and the expectations get heavier.
That matters because so many of the key pieces here are still getting used to that kind of spotlight. With Iowa State transfers spread across the roster, not many of the impact players have lived through the week-to-week grind of being attached to a ranked team.
How Campbell and his group handle that next layer of attention will be worth watching.
On the field, the biggest offensive question from Week 1 was the run blocking. Penn State protected the quarterback well enough, giving up just one sack, but the ground game never really hit top gear.
No running back besides Carson Hansen averaged more than four yards per carry, and for much of the afternoon the offensive line couldn’t generate much movement against Marshall’s front four. Taylor Mouser eventually adjusted by leaning more toward the outside, and the run game improved some later on.
Still, the interior of that line has room to grow if this offense is going to reach where it wants to go.
One of the more interesting players to follow this season is quarterback Alex Manske. His story is less about development in the usual sense and more about getting back to full strength after open-heart surgery in the offseason.
He could have taken all the time he needed, and nobody would have questioned it. Instead, he returned to the field as soon as he could and got into the opener, where he completed six of eight passes for 57 yards after coming in for Rocco Becht in the second half.
Manske looks like a player who could be part of the next chapter after Becht’s eligibility ends, and Week 1 only added to that conversation.
Another name back in the mix is Tony Rojas. His 2025 season was cut short when he tore his ACL, but he wasted no time showing he’s moving well again.
Against Marshall, he led Penn State with seven tackles and added a sack in the shutout win. After the kind of season he was putting together last year, Rojas looks like he’s aiming for that same level again in 2026.
If he stays on that path, NFL general managers will be paying attention come April.
In Other News...
Penn State Mourns A Former Star As New Details Emerge
Matt Suhey, one of Penn States most respected former stars, was found dead at his home in Deerfield, Illinois, a loss that adds another somber note to the programs long football lineage. Suhey went on to become a fixture with the Chicago Bears, remembered most for his work as a lead blocker for Walter Payton and for scoring the first touchdown in the Bears Super Bowl XX win.
The Lake County Coroners Office said there were no suspicious circumstances and that his death was due to natural causes tied to a significant medical history. For Penn State fans, Suhey was part of an era that still carries weight in the schools football story, and his passing is likely to prompt the kind of reflection that follows whenever one of the programs former standard-bearers is lost. [Read more 🡒]
Nick Sirianni Has A Surprising Penn State Tie Coming To The Linc
Matt Campbell and Nick Sirianni have traveled a long way from their days as roommates at Mount Union, and now their careers are set to cross again in a much bigger spotlight. Sirianni has already climbed to Super Bowl-winning status with the Eagles, while Campbell has settled in as Penn States head coach, giving their old relationship a new layer of intrigue whenever the schedules and sideline duties line up.
Campbell recently spoke with Sirianni after Penn States debut win, a reminder that the two still lean on one another as they navigate the demands that come with leading major programs. Now Campbell is bringing his team to Lincoln Financial Field, where Sirianni coaches, adding a personal twist to a game that already carries plenty of attention for Penn State fans following the programs new chapter. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Is Leaning Back Into Its Past In A Big Way
Penn State has quietly spent the early part of the season leaning back into its history, and not in a subtle way. Matt Campbell has made clear he wants the program to honor the legacy of former coach Joe Paterno, with Jay Paterno around practice, Sue Paterno addressing the team, and the school opening the Paterno Family Football Experience Room as part of that broader nod to the past. Even the season opener carried a familiar visual, with the team running out under a banner tied to Paternos era.
Campbell has framed it as a matter of respecting where the program came from and the value system that helped shape it. Still, the move naturally invites a bigger conversation about how Penn State balances celebration of its football lineage with the scrutiny that comes with it, and how far the program is willing to go in reconnecting with one of the most defining figures in its history. [Read more 🡒]