After two games, Penn State already has a pretty clear picture at quarterback and linebacker. The rest of the board? Not nearly as clean.
That’s the best way to read the early “videotape evidence” Matt Campbell keeps coming back to. Through two weeks, Penn State has seen enough to know Rocco Becht is playing at a level that changes what this offense can be, and that Tony Rojas looks like a linebacker ready to take over games again. Beyond that, the Nittany Lions are still sorting out who they really are in the run game, along the offensive line and on the edge of the defense.
Becht has been the headline act. He’s off to the best start of his career after two straight outings that qualify as the best consecutive games he’s played. The numbers jump off the page: a 75.6 percent completion rate, which ranks third in the Big Ten, a 7/0 touchdown-to-interception ratio and the conference’s top passer efficiency rating at 2227.51.
And this hasn’t just been safe, efficient football. Becht has delivered throws that force everyone to pay attention. Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser said one of them was the best he has ever seen from Becht.
Becht’s move to Penn State wasn’t inevitable when Campbell got the job. He had other offers, and he came in at a relative discount because of his previous ties to Campbell, Mouser and the offense.
That history helped make the fit possible, but Becht still has to keep proving he belongs in the conversation beyond the next game, at least until UCLA comes around. So far, though, he has given Penn State exactly what it needed at quarterback during a complete transition.
Rojas is delivering a similar kind of answer on defense. He said before the season that he would return even better from his 2025 ACL injury, and through two games that’s no longer just something you file away and wait to see. It’s showing up on tape.
He has led Penn State in tackles in both games, posting seven in each one, and he looks like he’s getting his old burst and movement back. The instincts are there, too.
Against Temple, Rojas intercepted quarterback Jaxon Smolik after peeling off a blitz because he didn’t expect to get there. Once he saw the play develop, he read Smolik perfectly and made the pick.
Rojas later said he was lucky because he was supposed to be blitzing. But that wasn’t luck.
That was awareness. And for a Penn State defense that has some blind spots, that kind of player can clean up a lot.
The run game, though, is still a work in progress, and Mouser didn’t try to dress that up.
"Obviously, to say that I'm less than thrilled with with where the run game's at would be an understatement," Mouser said. "I feel like there's a lot of growth to be had there."
Even so, Penn State keeps leaning on Hansen. The Iowa State transfer leads the Nittany Lions with 132 yards and 30 carries, and he hasn’t lost yardage on any attempt this season.
He’s averaging 4.4 yards per carry and has never lost a fumble in his career. That’s the profile Campbell and Mouser wanted when they brought him in, and it’s why he’s staying at the center of the offense unless something changes dramatically.
Against Temple, Hansen handled 70 percent of the carries. Two of those came in a Wildcat package built for him and designed to get him rolling.
Campbell has long said Hansen gets better as games go on, and the staff clearly tried to coax that out of him last week. If he keeps helping Penn State live in second-and-five territory, it’s hard to see another back taking over.
That leaves the rest of the backfield with very little tape to work from. James Peoples tried to leap a 6-foot Temple cornerback during Penn State’s two-minute drill before halftime, a play that was as dramatic as it was revealing about how badly the other backs want their shot. But the chances haven’t been there.
Peoples ran seven times. Cam Wallace had one carry, same as receiver Koby Howard. Quinton Martin Jr. didn’t take an offensive snap.
Penn State can’t realistically rotate four backs and expect smooth results, but Campbell and running backs coach Savon Huggins have talked about the different skills in the room. The problem is that the group still hasn’t been given enough reps to show what it can really do. Peoples doesn’t have a catch yet, and Martin still hasn’t gotten a first-half carry.
Up front, the questions are just as real. Penn State used only five offensive linemen for most of the Temple game, and the second unit appeared for just one series with quarterback Alex Manske.
That’s a thin margin, especially after line coach Ryan Clanton said before the season he was comfortable with as many as eight combinations. Through Game 2, he’s only used one.
Campbell was blunt about it.
"The depth on the O-line I think is a major question mark in my opinion," Campbell said. "Who is going to emerge, help us as we continue to grow forward?"
The same kind of uncertainty exists at defensive end, where injuries have already changed the shape of the room. Max Granville’s season-ending injury takes away Penn State’s best pure pass-rusher, and LaVar Arrington II is out at least a month, which only tightens the depth behind him.
That matters because Penn State needs edge pressure to turn into sacks and more disruptive plays. Without Granville, that part of the defense loses a major piece.
So after two games, Penn State knows it has a quarterback playing at a high level, a linebacker who looks fully back, and a starter at running back it trusts. It also knows there are still plenty of answers it has not found yet.
In Other News...
Buffalo Coach Sees One Clear Problem With Facing Penn State
Pete Lembo didnt need much time to make clear what stands out when he looks at Penn States roster ahead of a trip to Beaver Stadium. The Buffalo head coach went through the Nittany Lions with the kind of detail that comes from studying a team closely, pointing to linebacker Tony Rojas, a player he once recruited at South Carolina, and to middle linebacker Kooper Ebel as the sort of defensive leader who helps set the tone for the entire unit.
Lembo also had praise for Penn State quarterback Rocco Becht and for special teams coordinator Justin Lustig, giving Buffalo a broad view of the challenge waiting on Saturday. For a visiting coach, the problem is never just one star or one phase of the game, and Lembos breakdown suggested Penn State brings enough across the board to make every snap and every hidden-yardage situation matter. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Fans Have Every Right To Ask About Quinton Martin
Penn State has put up 72 points through its first two games, and the offense has looked efficient enough through the air to keep things moving. Rocco Becht has completed 75 percent of his passes without an interception, which has helped mask some of the unevenness in the ground game, where Carson Hansen leads the team in rushing yards but the big plays have not yet shown up.
That is why Quinton Martin Jr. stands out as a talking point after he did not carry the ball against Temple, especially after flashing in earlier action. With the run game still searching for a true burst element and no carry going longer than 13 yards, it is fair for Penn State fans to wonder how Martin fits into the rotation and when he might get another chance to change the pace. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State's Spending Reality Just Raised A Bigger Contender Question
Penn States place in the modern roster economy is becoming clearer, and it comes with an unmistakable catch. The Nittany Lions 2026 football roster budget is estimated at $29 million to $32 million, which puts them 21st nationally and seventh in the Big Ten, behind heavy hitters such as Ohio State and Oregon. In an era when talent acquisition is increasingly tied to spending power, that kind of ranking matters just as much as any depth chart discussion.
The roster churn only sharpens the point, with 62 newcomers this season and 40 of them arriving through the transfer portal. Matt Campbell has worked within those limits by keeping important pieces in place and supplementing them with players he knows from his previous stop, but the broader question hangs over everything Penn State is trying to build. The program can still compete, but the margin for error is getting thinner, and the financial gap is now part of the story. [Read more 🡒]