CHICAGO - Matt Campbell didn’t need much time to answer the question that followed him to Big Ten Football Media Days: which Penn State position group has him most intrigued?
“I think you guys will all ask me about the wide receiver room,” Campbell said.
That room has been a headache for Penn State for the last three seasons, but Campbell and wide receivers coach Kashif Moore are walking in with a different kind of confidence. Moore spent last season at UConn answering similar questions, and his belief comes from seeing Skyler Bell grow into UConn’s first Biletnikoff Award finalist and a fourth-round pick of the Buffalo Bills.
Campbell’s confidence comes from two places. He knows the four receivers who came with him from Iowa State, and he has also studied enough film from the holdovers to trust what he sees.
“I think that room is deservedly one of those rooms where I think we truly believe in because there is videotape evidence of [success],” Campbell said.
The overhaul was dramatic. Penn State lost three transfer starters to exhausted eligibility and watched seven more receivers transfer out. That left only Koby Howard, Peter Gonzalez and Lyrick Samuel on scholarship at the position.
To rebuild it, Campbell added five transfers, including four from Iowa State. Chase Sowell, a fifth-year senior, and Brett Eskildsen, a junior, were the headliners from that group after combining for 62 catches and 1,062 yards last season for the Cyclones.
Redshirt freshman Karon Brookins, listed at 6-5, did not play last season at Iowa State, but Campbell pointed to his “athleticism and talent.” Another redshirt freshman, Zay Robinson, arrived with plenty of buzz after drawing interest from much of the Big Ten.
Campbell called landing him “a huge recruiting win for us.”
Sowell’s path to Penn State has been anything but smooth. He has dealt with multiple injuries and surgeries since high school, was cut by Deion Sanders at Colorado and spent two seasons rebuilding at East Carolina before Campbell brought him to Iowa State. Even after two major preseason injuries last year, he still finished with 32 receptions for 500 yards.
“Chase Sowell had a very good season, and the difference between good and great, I think, is the evolution that you hope he made this offseason,” Campbell said. “He had some monumental games, some huge moments.”
Eskildsen led Iowa State’s receivers with 526 yards and five touchdowns. He was limited in spring work, but he enters fall camp healthy, and Campbell said his speed gives offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser a weapon to stretch the field.
“If you look at the trajectory of the great receivers we've had, what his freshman year looked like was awesome and what his sophomore looked was even better,” Campbell said. “And you feel like he's right in that wheelhouse of the great receivers we've had to be ready to take that next step to become a great football player.”
Among the returnees, Koby Howard has stood out this offseason for quarterback Rocco Becht. Howard and freshman Amarion Jackson were so committed to summer workouts that they were regularly at the football building at 5:30 a.m. - and Becht knew it because he was already there.
“Koby Howard is a guy that had great flashes in spring practice,” Campbell said. “But can you do it consistently? Can you show up every single day of fall camp?'
Jackson may be one of the freshmen who can actually help right away. ESPN listed him among the nation’s top newcomers, and his path to the roster has already taken a few turns.
He signed with Iowa State in December, then initially joined Penn State as a safety. When receivers were limited during spring drills, he moved over temporarily and played well enough to stay there.
“What he has shown as a young freshman with maturity and having phenomenal spring [has been encouraging],” Campbell said.
Campbell knows the recent history of the position. He also believes this group has the pieces to change it.
“I think there’s certainly great talent there,” Campbell said. “Some of the players that have played quality snaps have proven already to be really good players. They need to take the next step to be great.
“And some of the young players, they're freshmen or redshirt freshmen, and it's their time to emerge to show what they can consistently do so they're trusted to be on that football field. So I am excited about that group.”
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