Just weeks after being officially introduced as part of Matt Campbell’s first staff at Penn State, wide receivers coach Noah Pauley is on the move-again. This time, he’s heading to the NFL, taking the same position with the Green Bay Packers. It's a significant early shakeup for the new regime in Happy Valley, and one that comes well before Campbell has coached a single game in blue and white.
Pauley’s departure is notable for a few reasons, not least of which is his deep connection to Campbell. The two worked closely at Iowa State, where Pauley spent the last three seasons developing a strong reputation for both player development and recruiting. He was officially announced as Penn State’s wide receivers coach on December 18, but his time in State College ends before it ever really began.
This isn’t Pauley’s first brush with the Packers, either. Back in 2022, he worked with Green Bay’s wide receiver group as part of the NFL’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship. He also coached current Packers wideout Christian Watson during his time at North Dakota State, so there’s a clear comfort level and familiarity between Pauley and the organization.
And make no mistake-Pauley’s résumé speaks for itself. At Iowa State, he helped mold Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins into a formidable receiving duo.
Both topped 1,000 yards in the same season, a first in Cyclones history, and both went on to become Day 2 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, landing with the Houston Texans. That kind of production doesn’t go unnoticed, especially at a program that’s not exactly known for churning out elite wideouts.
Pauley also brought a championship pedigree to Penn State, even if only briefly. He won an FCS national title with North Dakota State and was part of two Division II championship teams as a player at Minnesota-Duluth. That winning DNA was expected to be a key piece of Campbell’s culture reset in State College.
Penn State has struggled to find consistent playmakers at receiver since Jahan Dotson left after the 2021 season and Parker Washington followed suit in 2022. The addition of Pauley was seen as a major step toward fixing that. Now, Campbell will have to pivot quickly to fill a crucial spot on his staff, just as offseason preparations begin to ramp up.
Marques Hagans, who held the role under James Franklin for the past three seasons, wasn’t retained by Campbell and has since landed at Michigan as an assistant wide receivers coach under Kyle Whittingham. That left Pauley with a clean slate to rebuild the position group in his image. And he was already making moves.
Four former Iowa State wideouts transferred to Penn State, including Chase Sowell and Brett Eskildsen, giving Pauley familiar faces to work with. Meanwhile, Campbell retained a couple of in-house talents, including Koby Howard, signaling a blend of old and new in the room. The plan was clear: reshape the wide receiver corps with competitive, high-character players who know how to win-even if they weren’t the most heralded recruits.
That mindset was something Pauley touched on during his first and only media availability with Penn State, held just a day before news of his departure broke. He talked about the importance of competitiveness, of bringing in the right kind of guys-not just the most talented, but the ones who understand the process of winning and are willing to buy in.
“If you’re not gonna be able to play it, find a way to challenge yourself and be competitive,” Pauley said. “We’ve had a lot of success with maybe less talent, but they all wanted to win, and they knew how to win and the process to go win.”
He also shared a lighthearted moment from his first recruiting trip with the Penn State logo on his chest. At one high school, he was greeted not just by the head coach, but also by the principal, assistant principal, and superintendent-a reception he admitted was a little different from what he was used to.
That kind of presence on the recruiting trail was expected to be a big asset for Penn State, especially at a position that’s been in flux for several years. Pauley had already begun building relationships with top pass-catching prospects, and his reputation as a strong recruiter was one of the reasons he was brought in.
But now, Campbell will have to find someone else to lead that charge. With the wide receiver room already in transition, this is a pivotal hire for a first-year head coach looking to establish his identity in one of college football’s most demanding environments.
The search is on, and the clock is ticking. Seven months remain until Penn State kicks off its season, and Campbell’s vision for the wide receiver position will now have to come to life under new leadership.