Matt Campbell brought Rocco Becht with him from Iowa State to be Penn State’s starting quarterback in 2026, but he’s not the only QB that followed him to Happy Valley. 2025 four-star Alex Manske also transferred to the Nittany Lions after redshirting in Ames last season.
Manske will have competition to be Penn State’s QB of the future with 2026 recruits Kase Evans and Peyton Falzone, but because of his familiarity with Campbell and offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser, he’s well-positioned to be the program’s 2027 starter and 2026 QB2. Or at least he was well-positioned until an injury derailed his first spring in Happy Valley.
Manske was ruled out for spring football after his unspecified injury required surgery, and on Tuesday, Campbell provided an update about Manske at his media availability.
“Obviously, we feel for Alex,” Campbell said. “It’s kind of something he’s been dealing with, but we felt it was best to get it taken care of now so we could get him back ready for fall camp.”
Alex Manske is spending spring football recovering in Iowa
Jake Waters, who also followed Campbell to Penn State to remain in his role as quarterbacks coach, shared more insight into how Manske is spending his first spring as a Nittany Lion and revealed that he’s at home in Iowa as he recovers.
Alex is doing great,” Waters said. “I talk to him every day. He’s in great spirits. He’s itching to get back here. We Zoom him in on every meeting.”
While Manske will be in meetings virtually, he’ll miss out on significant mental reps this spring, on top of his physical development being derailed by the injury.
As a former four-star recruit, Manske was never a lock to be Iowa State’s next starting, let alone Penn State’s, but Campbell bringing him to Happy Valley proved there’s some belief from the staff that he can start games in the Big Ten. That may still be true, but if he’s set back, Penn State could have an interesting QB2 battle and may need to find a backup plan for its 2027 QB room.