There’s a simple way to frame Rocco Becht, and it says plenty about the job ahead for Penn State in Year 1 of the Matt Campbell era: he’s the kind of quarterback you can win with, not necessarily the kind you win because of.
That doesn’t make him a liability. It just raises the standard everywhere else.
If the quarterback is more steady than spectacular, the rest of the roster has to carry more of the load. That’s always been true, but in the NIL and transfer portal era, the margin for error has gotten thinner and thinner.
Becht enters his fifth college season with 39 career starts, and the odds of him suddenly making a huge leap at 22, almost 23 years old, feel slim. It can happen - Kenny Pickett is the example that stands out, with a breakout in Year 5 as a fourth-year starter - but Becht is also moving from the Big 12 to the Big Ten.
That makes the leap even less likely. If it happens at all, it’s probably an outlier season, and the source material puts that chance at fewer than 5%.
So the real question is where Penn State can squeeze out improvement from an offense that finished No. 62 in points per drive last season and returns Becht plus his top-five receivers. The answer may not be one position group alone.
The receivers are stepping up to a tougher league. Carson Hansen didn’t get to 1,000 rushing yards last year.
James Peoples is an Ohio State cast-off. The tight end room looks strong, with Andrew Rappleyea joining a group that was already excellent in Ames.
But the most important piece might be much more specific: red-zone offense.
That’s where Becht’s limitations are most likely to show up. He can run, but he isn’t a true plus athlete.
He has a good arm, not a great one. He processes well from the pocket, but he isn’t a precision machine.
He likes to choose his spots and give his receivers a chance, a little like Trace McSorley, though the comparison only goes so far.
Once the field shrinks, that style gets harder to sustain. Matchup throwing becomes tougher.
Separation is harder to find and harder to finish. That’s when Taylor Mouser leans on the run game.
And he leans hard.
Last season, Iowa State ran the ball on 78.1% of its red-zone snaps. Penn State was even higher at 79.7%.
The Cyclones still didn’t get the payoff they wanted, finishing No. 82 in red-zone scoring percentage and No. 58 in red-zone touchdown percentage, according to CFBstats.com. Their kickers, at least, were steady inside 40 yards, missing just one field goal there.
That’s the blueprint now: if Penn State is going to get better offensively, it probably won’t come from Becht suddenly becoming something he isn’t. It has to come from making Mouser’s stubborn bullyball approach work more efficiently in tighter spaces.
There are reasons to think the run game can hold up. Hanson is capable.
Gabe Burkle is one of the best blocking tight ends in the sport. With Burkle, Rappleyea, and Benjamin Brahmer, the 13-personnel look should be a problem for defenses.
Up front, Penn State brought in only one Iowa State starter, left guard Trevor Buhr, while counting on returners Anthony Donkoh and Cooper Cousins on the right side, Texas State transfer Brock Riker at center, and one of three returners with fewer than 50 career snaps at left tackle.
It’s a line that should be good. Better than what Campbell and Mouser had in Ames, at least. The question is whether it’s good enough to move Big Ten fronts when the field compresses and defenses can crowd the box.
Against a softer schedule, probably. Maybe even against USC, though the Trojans are still adjusting to the physical demands of the Big Ten. Against Michigan, though, probably not.
That’s where the distinction matters. When the game tightens and the supporting cast gets tested, the gap between a quarterback you can win with and a quarterback you win because of becomes obvious. And unless Penn State finds a way to make the red zone a strength, this team looks more like a 9-3 or 10-2 outfit than a playoff contender, even with the easiest schedule in the conference.
In Other News...
Drew Allars NFL Debut Just Gave Penn State Fans A Big Reminder
Penn State fans got a fresh reminder this weekend of why Drew Allar still looms large in the conversation around the programs recent quarterback lineage. In his NFL debut with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Allar looked comfortable in a preseason setting, completing 10 of 13 passes for 154 yards and showing the kind of command that made him such a familiar name in State College before he moved on to the pros.
The bigger takeaway for Penn State followers is the sense that his game is still trending in the right direction. Head coach Mike McCarthy pointed to Allars development and the work he has done within the West Coast offense, while Allar acknowledged the adjustments and said he remains focused on becoming more consistent. For a fan base that watched him grow into a centerpiece player, that is the kind of early NFL progress worth keeping an eye on. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Backup QB Battle Just Took An Unusual Turn
The backup quarterback race has taken on a different feel in State College with Connor Barry in the mix, a transfer from Division III Christopher Newport who has already gotten work in both spring and fall camps. For Penn State, it is an unusual path into a crowded room, but Barry has been given a chance to show what he can do after making the leap to a Power 4 program.
Quarterbacks coach Jake Waters has pointed to Barrys experience and the way he has handled the speed and complexity of Division I football, which is no small adjustment for a player coming from that level. Barry is one of the rare Division III quarterbacks to make this kind of jump, and the fact that he has been getting meaningful reps suggests Penn State sees more than just a storybook roster add, even if the competition around him is still very much unresolved. [Read more 🡒]
Penn States RB2 Battle Just Got More Interesting After Latest Practice
Penn States preseason camp has turned the No. 2 running back job into one of the more closely watched position battles on the roster, and the mix at the top keeps shifting. Iowa State transfer Carson Hansen has been getting work with the first team, while Quinton Martin Jr. remains in the race, giving the staff a few different styles to sort through as the offense tries to settle in behind its top option.
Ohio State transfer James Peoples has pushed himself right into the conversation after a strong practice, and his value goes beyond carrying the ball. Head coach Matt Campbell has made it clear that blocking is a major part of the evaluation for running backs, and that kind of reliability can go a long way in a room where every rep matters. With camp still unfolding, the battle for that backup role feels far from settled. [Read more 🡒]