Penn State’s trip to Michigan comes with an uncomfortable backdrop: an 0-3 Big Ten start and a roster full of players who need to clean things up fast.
As CBS Sports analyst Charles Davis put it, "Both of them are realizing, hold it a minute, Penn State-Michigan, and neither one of us is ranked? This doesn't even feel right. That's not normal."
The Nittany Lions have bigger issues than one matchup. Their rushing offense is 12th in the Big Ten, and their rushing defense sits 17th. Still, Saturday in Ann Arbor brings the kind of game where individual improvement matters just as much as the overall picture.
Left tackle Malachi Goodman is one of the first names on that list. The redshirt freshman has held up reasonably well in pass protection, but his run blocking has been a problem next to guard Trevor Buhr.
Pro Football Focus has graded Goodman as Penn State’s lowest-rated starting lineman in two of the three Big Ten games and in four of the past five games overall. His season-low mark, 41.3, came against USC.
He’s been missing assignments, getting stuck between levels and looking overmatched at times. Penn State has been reluctant to shake up the line, but Garrett Sexton is there if Goodman keeps slipping.
The ground game also needs more from Carson Hansen. Penn State’s rushing attack has been short on positives, and Hansen has not looked like the version of himself the Nittany Lions expected from Iowa State - or maybe he has, and that’s the issue.
He has avoided fumbles and negative runs, aside from the halfback option USC swallowed up, but he has not shown much ability to break tackles or create anything in tight spaces. Penn State’s run game lacks pop, and Hansen has not brought it with him.
Even so, he should have a Big Ten carry longer than 8 yards.
At tight end, Ben Brahmer hasn’t been featured nearly enough. That’s not all on him, either.
Penn State threw to him just three times against USC, and not until the fourth quarter. He finished with one catch for 4 yards.
Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser took responsibility for not getting the 6-7 tight end involved more often.
“I need to make sure that we get him the ball more because he is one of our best players, and that's a focal point for me every week, and has been for the last couple years,” Mouser said.
Zay Robinson should also have a bigger role. Koby Howard’s injury opened the slot spot for him, but the production hasn’t followed.
Robinson has three receptions for 42 yards in three Big Ten games and went without a catch against Wisconsin. He can be dangerous once the ball is in his hands, something he showed on punt returns in non-conference play, but even that edge has faded.
He has 129 all-purpose yards over three Big Ten games, which is four fewer than he piled up against Buffalo. A screen, pitch or end around might be the best way to get him going.
On defense, linebacker Kooper Ebel has been part of too many missed tackles. Penn State missed 17 against USC, and Ebel was involved in several of them.
He looked out of position or slow to react against Northwestern and USC, but the Nittany Lions don’t have much choice but to keep him on the field because he wears the helmet headset and relays the calls from D’Anton Lynn. Depth at linebacker is also a concern.
Ebel, who was one of Iowa State’s top tacklers last season, has had a rough run against Big Ten offenses, especially USC. PFF gave him a season-low 48.2 last week.
Defensive end Ikenna Ezeogu has also been stuck in a difficult spot. Penn State has used the 6-5, 275-pound lineman as a cross-the-line player, but that role has not produced much.
He has not been able to generate pressure off the edge, and when he moves inside, he gets washed out. Ezeogu does have four quarterback hurries, but no sacks and no tackles for loss.
His PFF grade against USC was a season-low 57.2.
Safety play has been just as uneven. Marcus Neal Jr. remains one of the more puzzling pieces on the roster.
After a season-low PFF grade of 37.4 against Temple, he bounced all the way up to a national-best 91.6 among safeties against Buffalo. Then last week, he didn’t take a defensive snap because, as Matt Campbell said, the defense needed more coverage players on the field.
USC still piled up 86 yards after the catch, which makes Neal’s absence stand out even more. If there’s one defender who needs a major response at Michigan, it’s Neal.
Jeremiah Cooper is in the same boat. He posted a PFF grade of 38.6 against USC, his worst of the season, and spent the night chasing plays in the secondary while being involved in coverage on at least two of the Trojans’ touchdowns. That figures to be his toughest assignment of the year, but it also makes him another player in line for a much-needed bounce-back performance in Ann Arbor.
In Other News...
Penn State's Linebacker Room Just Took Another Hit
Penn States linebacker group has already been under the microscope this fall, and it took another blow when Alex Tatsch was ruled out for the rest of the season after an injury in practice. Coach Matt Campbell confirmed the situation and said the full details are still being sorted out, leaving the Nittany Lions to keep adjusting their depth chart at a spot that rarely allows much margin for error.
Cam Smiths recovery offers at least a little relief, with the expectation that he should be back soon. Even so, the timing is not ideal for a defense trying to settle its rotation, and the next stretch will show how well Penn State can absorb another loss in a room that has already been asked to do more than its share. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State's Matt Campbell Era Already Faces One Uncomfortable Reality
Penn States 2026 season has already put Matt Campbell in a difficult spot, with the Nittany Lions sitting at 3-3 and still searching for their first interconference win. The issues have shown up on both sides of the ball, and while the roster includes a heavy Iowa State influence with several transfers following Campbell to Happy Valley, the early returns have underscored how thin the teams margin is against Big Ten opposition.
What has become increasingly clear is that Penn State does not yet have the kind of roster depth or overall talent level needed to sustain a national-title push, especially with the offense adjusting without wide receiver Koby Howard. The bigger concern is less about one rough stretch than the broader build, with analysts pointing to the need for more spending and stronger recruiting if Campbell is going to close the gap at the top of the sport. [Read more 🡒]
Matt Campbell Makes Penn State Pitch As Pressure Starts Mounting
Matt Campbell spent part of his recruiting pitch leaning into what makes Penn State different, stressing to prospects that playing in State College comes with a level of visibility and responsibility that follows a player well beyond Saturdays in the fall. The message was less about salesmanship than perspective, with Campbell framing the program as one where the expectations are real, but so are the opportunities that can come from wearing the jersey.
The timing of that pitch matters, too, because Penn State is trying to steady itself after a strong start gave way to recent struggles. Campbell did not pretend otherwise, but he sounded confident there is a path forward as the staff works to keep the bigger picture in focus. For recruits, the appeal is obvious enough: this is a program that asks a lot, yet can still open doors long after football ends. [Read more 🡒]