Following Penn State football's embarrassing loss to Northwestern on Friday night, head coach Matt Campbell took a lot of responsibility and gave very coach-like answers without ever admitting the brutal truth: His Iowa State guys were never ready to take on the Big Ten.
"The challenge will be getting ourselves aligned back to who we want to be, where we need to be and fundamentally the team we need to be to be able to win," he told reporters in his postgame press conference, per Daniel Gallen.
The biggest issue with this is that Campbell doesn't have the right level of talent in that locker room. He may have "the right human beings," as he also said, but the product on the field is what matters the most at the end of the day and who he has in that locker room doesn't cut it.
When the Nittany Lions (3-2, 0-2 Big Ten) took on the non-conference slate, they were on Cloud 9 and the vibes were very high going into conference play. However, the cupcake slate will always make them look better than what they actually are. "Iowa State East," as many have called this 2026 Penn State squad, will look great vs. Marshall, Temple, and Buffalo. The last two weeks proved that it's not sustainable when the competition actually heats up.
Matt Campbell: We have the right human beings in that locker room, and we certainly have the right coaches in that locker room. The challenge will be getting ourselves aligned back to who we want to be, where we need to be and fundamentally the team we need to be to be able to…
— Daniel Gallen (@danieljtgallen) October 3, 2026
Matt Campbell has to leave Iowa State behind if he wants to succeed in the Big Ten
This isn't the Big 12 and a huge chunk of this roster is used to playing against that conference's level of talent. The adjustment to the Big Ten was always a question mark. After losing the Wisconsin in Week 4, Campbell had a slightly shorter week to prove that once the reality check happened, he could get his team prepared for Week 5. That not only didn't happen, but the Nittany Lions looked worse, and their performance against the Badgers was very concerning already.
Campbell won't ever say it to the media, but he has to at least admit to himself that who he has on the roster won't cut it. Yes, it is his job and his staff's job to get these players prepared for game day, but there's only so much talent you can squeeze out of some guys.
Running back Carson Hansen had four carries for 19 yards and one touchdown; wide receivers Brett Eskildsen and Chase Sowell had six catches for 45 yards and five catches for 68 yards (and one score), respectively; and tight end Benjamin Brahmer had five receptions for 45 yards. Hansen led the team in rushing yards, and those three pass catchers led Penn State in receiving.
Now, there's a big missing piece to this offense, and that's receiver Koby Howard. It's not a coincidence that the Nittany Lions star receiver was already there before Campbell got to town.
Campbell admitted that the team isn't "fundamentally" where it needs to be. That foundation isn't only built out in practice, it's built in the offseason. It's built via the Transfer Portal and recruiting. Campbell may have taken a huge dip into that portal when he was hired, but he didn't get the pieces he needed to compete at this level. On the recruiting side of things, he failed. Simple as that.
"Iowa State East" doesn't cut it in the Big Ten, and that's something Campbell is learning the hard way. After two weeks, fans can only hope he's realized it and is just spewing coach speak to the media. If he hasn't, there's a long offseason ahead for Penn State, and Week 5 isn't even over yet.
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