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2026 Penn State

3–⁠4 (0–⁠4 Big Ten), coached by Matt Campbell. The season’s Wikipedia article records 3–⁠3, over six games to the seven on file here.

Schedule and results

Penn State in 2026, game by game: won vs. Marshall 45–0; won at Temple 27–9; won vs. Buffalo 55–13; lost vs. Wisconsin 20–24; lost at Northwestern 13–34; lost vs. No. 19 USC 23–31; lost at Michigan 18–21+45−21Won 45–0 vs. Marshall+45MarshallWon 27–9 at Temple+18TempleWon 55–13 vs. Buffalo+42BuffaloLost 20–24 vs. Wisconsin-4WisconsinLost 13–34 at Northwestern-21NorthwesternLost 23–31 vs. No. 19 USC-8No. 19 USCLost 18–21 at Michigan-3Michigan
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5vsMarshallW 45–⁠073%
Sep 12atTempleW 27–⁠969%
Sep 19vsBuffaloW 55–⁠1384%
Sep 26vsWisconsinL 20–⁠2479%
Oct 2atNorthwesternL 13–⁠3456%
Oct 10vs19USCL 23–⁠3153%
Oct 17atMichiganL 18–⁠2140%
Oct 31vsPurduePreview75%
Nov 7atWashingtonPreview40%
Nov 14vsMinnesotaPreview64%
Nov 21vsRutgersPreview75%
Nov 28atMarylandPreview68%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 18
  2. Wk 2: 16
  3. Wk 3: 14
  4. Wk 4: 13
Record
3–⁠4
Conference
0–⁠4 tied for 16th in Big Ten
AP now
No. 13 in the week 4 poll; peak No. 13
Points
201–⁠132
Coach
Matt Campbell
Elo
1576 −50 this season
SP+ rating
9.6 No. 38 of 138; offense No. 45, defense No. 29, special teams No. 45
SRS
5.2 No. 47 of 138 in FBS
Returning
8% of last season’s EPA, No. 123 of 136
Recruiting class
No. 65 roster talent No. 26 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Taylor Mouser
Defensive coordinator
D’Anton Lynn
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense64th of 138
  • Defense53rd of 138
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted57th of 138
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted30th of 138
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1242%1.1964th of 138
Defense0.0639%1.2153rd of 138
Opponent-adjusted0.11 off
0.04 def		40% off
39% def		—57th off
30th def

Passing and running

Pass successDepth of targetDeep throwsLine yardsStuffed
Offense47%9.8 yds16%2.7016%
Defense37%7.8 yds11%2.9020%
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.8own 3114% allowed
Defense3.6own 2617% caused

CORE rating 5.8, 41st of 138 (offense 1.2, defense -4.7).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsRocco Becht QB1,664 yds
Passing touchdownsRocco Becht QB12 TD
Rushing yardsCarson Hansen RB278 yds
Rushing touchdownsCarson Hansen RB4 TD
Receiving yardsChase Sowell WR510 yds
Receiving touchdownsBenjamin Brahmer TE3 TD
TacklesTony Rojas LB56 tkl
SacksTony Rojas LB5 sacks
InterceptionsJosiah Zayas CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2026 class

Elijah Reeder DE★★★★No. 247
Jackson Ford DE★★★★No. 301
Josiah Zayas CB★★★★No. 414
Peyton Falzone QB★★★★No. 438
Tyrell Chatman S★★★No. 554

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2026 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.50.880
Running backs13.00.870
Receivers23.00.876
Offensive line23.00.870
Defensive line24.00.911
Linebackers13.00.866
Defensive backs43.30.882
Athletes and specialists13.00.824
Whole class153.30.877

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 112

The 2026 roster

112 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 60 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 38

The 2026 portal
Benjamin Brahmer TE★★★★from Iowa State
Rocco Becht QB★★★★from Iowa State
Chase Sowell WR★★★★from Iowa State
Caleb Bacon LB★★★★from Iowa State
Marcus Neal S★★★★from Iowa State
Brett Eskildsen WR★★★from Iowa State
Carson Hansen RB★★★from Iowa State
Cooper Alexander TE★★★from Iowa State
Gabe Burkle TE★★★from Iowa State
Ikenna Ezeogu DL★★★from Iowa State
James Peoples RB★★★from Ohio State
Cael Brezina LB★★★from Iowa State

And 26 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 48

Chaz Coleman DE★★★★★to Tennessee
Luke Reynolds TE★★★★to Virginia Tech
Xavier Gilliam DL★★★★to Tennessee
Ethan Grunkemeyer QB★★★★to Virginia Tech
Zuriah Fisher DE★★★★to USC
A.J. Harris CB★★★★to Indiana
Amare Campbell LB★★★to Tennessee
Andrew Olesh TE★★★to Oregon
Daniel Jennings DE★★★to Virginia Tech
Dejuan Lane S★★★to Tennessee
Elliot Washington II CB★★★to Clemson
Jeff Exinor Jr. WR★★★to Virginia Tech

And 36 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2026 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
UCLA4–⁠06–⁠0
Ohio State4–⁠06–⁠1
USC3–⁠16–⁠1
Indiana3–⁠16–⁠1
Iowa2–⁠15–⁠1
Northwestern2–⁠15–⁠1
Oregon2–⁠14–⁠2
Minnesota2–⁠14–⁠2
Wisconsin2–⁠14–⁠2
Nebraska2–⁠25–⁠2
Purdue2–⁠23–⁠4
Michigan1–⁠24–⁠2
Illinois1–⁠23–⁠3
Rutgers1–⁠22–⁠4
Washington1–⁠34–⁠3
Penn State0–⁠43–⁠4
Michigan State0–⁠42–⁠5
Maryland0–⁠42–⁠5

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.