Ben Brahmer arrives at Penn State with the kind of profile that makes a fan base lean in before he even takes a snap. He’s listed at 6-7, 250 pounds, he’s been timed at almost 22 miles per hour, and Matt Campbell is already talking about him like he belongs in a category all his own.
That kind of buzz is not accidental. Brahmer was the top-rated newcomer in Penn State’s 40-player transfer class, per the 247Sports Composite, and the No. 1 tight end in the portal group. He and quarterback Rocco Becht were the headliners among the 24 former Iowa State players who followed Campbell to Penn State.
Campbell didn’t exactly play down the hype at Big Ten Media Days.
“I think Ben is an elite category of his own,” Campbell said.
For Penn State, Brahmer looks like the centerpiece of what Campbell called the best position group on the roster. And even if most of the Big Ten doesn’t know him yet, that won’t last long.
The résumé starts in Nebraska, where Brahmer was a four-sport standout at Pierce High School. He ran sprints and hurdles, threw the shot put, scored 20 points a night in basketball and helped lead his football team to a state championship in 2022. In that title game, he hauled in 11 catches for 249 yards and three touchdowns as Pierce captured its second championship in three seasons.
Brahmer then jumped straight into college football at Iowa State and never really left the field, appearing in 21 straight games and playing all 13 as a freshman. His sophomore season in 2024 was interrupted by injury, but Campbell still described him as “truly one of the best tight ends, if not the best tight end in the country, at every skill set.” That was in a year when Penn State had Tyler Warren, the Mackey Award winner, putting together a 102-catch season.
Brahmer came back healthy in 2025 and made the most of it. He led Iowa State’s offense with 37 receptions and six touchdown catches, and Becht leaned on him everywhere that mattered - in the red zone, on two-point tries and on third downs when a conversion had to be earned the hard way.
Now at Penn State, Brahmer finally got a full offseason and spring to work without the injury interruptions that had slowed him down the last two years. Campbell said the difference showed immediately.
“You're talking about a guy that's almost 6-7, that runs almost 22 mph and a guy that, really in the last two offseasons, hasn't had the ability to train because of coming back from some injuries," Campbell said. "This is the first offseason he's been healthy, and he's done an unbelievable job with his body. I think he's the most physical and best version of himself that he's been in our program."
That is the kind of language that tends to follow a tight end on the rise. Pro Football Focus has Brahmer ranked as the No. 8 returning tight end in the country and calls him a “dangerous red-zone threat” for his size. PFF is less sold on him as a run blocker, which is where another Iowa State transfer, Gabe Burkle, is expected to help.
Penn State got useful tight end play last season from Andrew Rappleyea, whose role expanded as the year went on. But Brahmer gives the Nittany Lions a chance to have something bigger - the sort of difference-making tight end that can shape an offense the way Mike Gesicki, Pat Freiermuth or Brenton Strange once did. The comparison stops short of Tyler Warren, at least for now.
There’s one more wrinkle worth watching: Brahmer is entering his fourth college season without redshirting, which makes him eligible for the NCAA’s new “five-in-five” rule. If he has the kind of year Penn State expects, that detail may not matter for long because the NFL would be waiting.
Still, if there’s a Penn State player who looks positioned to break out nationally on offense in 2026, Brahmer is the obvious name. Campbell and offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser both like building around tight ends, and Brahmer may be the best one in the Big Ten by the time the season is done.
In Other News...
Penn State Fall Camp Opens With Two Huge Roster Fights
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The backfield battle has the feel of a true camp-long competition, with Carson Hansen, James Peoples and Quinton Martin Jr. all in the mix for playing time. Up front, Penn State also has to see how returning players look after injury and how quickly the new front-seven additions settle into the rotation. By the time camp gets rolling, the Lions should have a much clearer sense of which areas are settled and which ones still need a late summer answer. [Read more 🡒]
Penn States Edge Battle Could Shape The Defense Faster Than Expected
Preseason practices are underway for Penn State as it gets ready to open the football season against Marshall, and one of the more interesting position battles is taking shape on the edge. Alexander McPherson, a sophomore transfer from Colorado, is in the mix for playing time as a defensive end, joining a group that is still young and relatively inexperienced.
Matt Campbell has sounded upbeat about the way that room is developing, pointing to both the talent there and the competition pushing the group forward. For Penn State, that makes the edge spots one of the early camp stories worth watching, since the faster those players settle in, the sooner the defense can find its footing. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Enters Fall Camp With More Pressure Than Fans Wanted
Fall camp is arriving with a little more edge around Penn State than fans probably hoped for, because the questions are not limited to one spot on the depth chart. Defensive end, quarterback and left tackle all figure to be watched closely, and that makes the first weeks of practice feel less like a tune-up and more like an early sorting session for a team that wants clarity before the season starts.
There is some familiar help around the program, too, with head coach Matt Campbell bringing in Michael Mauti as director of football engagement and adding to a staff that already features several former Penn State players. Even so, the preseason outlook has been a mixed one, with Bill Connelly suggesting the Nittany Lions could have trouble even cracking the AP Top 25 despite a manageable schedule, while ESPN singled out quarterback Rocco Becht as the key X factor. [Read more 🡒]