Penn State wrapped up training camp Friday night with Victory Day at Beaver Stadium, a feel-good event that quarterback Rocco Becht called the “best day of the year.” It also served as the final checkpoint before the Nittany Lions turn their attention to Sept. 5, when they host Marshall in the 2026 opener and head coach Matt Campbell and dozens of players will experience their first real game in Beaver Stadium.
Campbell isn’t pretending the picture is finished yet. Coming out of camp, he made clear this team is still being built.
“I think we’re going to keep learning about this football team, I hate to tell you, through the first part of the season,” Campbell said.
Even with that caution, a few themes emerged over more than three weeks of work.
Becht looks like a quarterback who has reset himself. He entered camp physically moved on from last season at Iowa State, but he’s still carrying the mental edge he built by playing through injuries to both shoulders.
He put it plainly: “I'm not a quitter,” he said, “and so I'm gonna go out there and win at all costs. That’s what I’ve preached in the past and ever since I got here at Penn State.”
A fourth-year starter, Becht drew repeated praise from Campbell, offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser and quarterbacks coach Jake Waters. They all described a quarterback whose tone, productivity and overall presence have taken a noticeable step forward this month.
Campbell went even further in his evaluation.
“Rocco’s in a completely different space than I’ve seen him really in his career,” Campbell said. “He's a guy who's already gone through the highs of college football and the lows of college football.
He's in the same system now for a fifth year. I hate to use the word flawless, but he's played at an elite clip every day.
“He's had great command of situational football and has had great command of what we're trying to accomplish offensively. But the biggest thing that a great quarterback does is, he leads the team. ... He’s done a really good job, with his competitiveness and his leadership, to come in and really demand the respect of the football team, and l think it’s shown by the way he’s played in camp.”
The receiver room, meanwhile, is drawing more confidence inside the building than it is from the outside. The staff likes what it has seen from position coach Kashif Moore’s group, even if the broader fan base is still waiting to see it against real opponents.
The three Iowa State transfers - Chase Sowell, Brett Eskildsen and Zay Robinson - have been steady and polished for much of camp. Koby Howard has taken the message about consistency seriously and raised his practice level.
Freshman Amarion Jackson could be the 2026 signee who sees the most action.
That gives Becht plenty to work with. Add in the tight ends, a group Campbell can’t stop talking about, and then fold in James Peoples and Quinton Martin Jr. as backfield options, and the offense has enough targets that the receivers do not have to be perfect right away.
Penn State’s offensive line also took important steps through camp, even if the unit still has work to do before Week 1. Ryan Clanton had to blend transfers and returnees who came from three different systems last season into one starting five, a difficult assignment with real questions still hanging over the group.
The early signs have been encouraging. The line is big and athletic, starting with left tackle Malachi Goodman, who moves extremely well at 6-6, 330 pounds. Next to him, Iowa State transfer Trevor Buhr may have been the team’s best camp performer, according to coaches.
On the right side, Anthony Donkoh and Cooper Cousins are settling into their most natural spots at tackle and guard. Donkoh is getting healthy at the right time, and Cousins fits the line’s standard of being “dominant, nasty and accountable.”
At center, Brock Riker of Texas State had to handle a huge offseason load: learning a new offense, building chemistry with a new quarterback and adding about 30 pounds. He checked every box. If he becomes the center Clanton targeted in the portal, Penn State’s front could have real strength.
The concern there is depth. Clanton says he has as many as eight line combinations planned, but the roster still lacks the kind of experienced numbers needed to absorb major injuries up front.
Defensively, D’Anton Lynn’s arrival gives the staff a fascinating storyline. The former all-Big Ten cornerback is back at his alma mater after three years on the West Coast, and if things go the way people expect, he won’t stay in Happy Valley forever. Campbell sees a future head coach or NFL coordinator, with an NFL head job eventually in the picture.
For now, Lynn has had to solve one of the toughest problems on staff: installing a defense that is new to both Penn State and Campbell. The system leans bigger up front, especially at tackle, and uses a 4-2-5 base - both new elements for this program.
It has not been smooth all the way through. Several important players missed time or are working back from injuries, including linebackers Tony Rojas and Jeremiah Cooper, both returning from ACL tears, defensive backs Daryus Dixson, Zion Tracy and Jahmir Joseph, and defensive end Max Granville, who hasn’t played since the 2024 season.
Even with those issues, Lynn has put together a defense built around versatility at every level, experience where it counts at tackle, middle linebacker and cornerback, and enough new contributors to matter, including freshman cornerback Josiah Zayas.
Campbell, though, is keeping the brakes on any big declarations.
“There's a difference between being great in camp and being great on Saturday,” Campbell said. “The lights come on, the coaches are off the field, and now it's real. Who can continue to carry that momentum forward?”
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Sean Clifford gave the Bengals something to think about over the preseason, and he did it with the sort of steady showing that can make a backup quarterback case more complicated than anyone planned. The former Penn State signal-caller, now in his fourth NFL season, looked comfortable directing touchdown drives against the Philadelphia Eagles and generally made the most of his chances after arriving on Cincinnatis practice squad.
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What Clanton seems to want most, though, is not a clean label for each blocker but a room full of linemen who can handle more than one job and do it with force. That approach gives Penn State flexibility as it rebuilds up front, but it also puts a premium on how quickly the newcomers and holdovers can adapt to the same standard. The bigger question now is how far that versatility can go once the snaps start getting divided in earnest. [Read more 🡒]