Iowa State Cyclones' QB Coach Officially Leaves for Penn State Nittany Lions

The Iowa State Cyclones have officially lost another talented coach to the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Dec 8, 2025; University Park, PA, USA; Matt Campbell poses for a photo after being announced as the Penn State Nittany Lions new head coach during a press conference at the Beaver Stadium Press Room. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

As the Iowa State Cyclones continue to start their new era with Jimmy Rogers taking over as the head coach, they have recently lost another valuable assistant. 

It has been a crazy couple of weeks for the Cyclones with a ton of change happening for the program following the departure of Matt Campbell to the Penn State Nittany Lions. While Iowa State was fortunate that they were able to bring in Rogers so quickly, it has led to a lot of turnover for the program. 

With how college football is now with the transfer portal, it was always to be expected that the Cyclones were going to see a lot of players and coaches leave following Campbell’s departure. After 10 years with the program, he was well-established and had built some great relationships. 

Coach Campbell was able to just have one of the best recruiting classes in the history of the program in 2025, but that class has now been cut in half so far. With some players likely heading to Penn State, the Cyclones will be trying to add some talent in the coming weeks to replenish it. 

Furthermore, while recruits and players will undoubtedly be following Campbell, a talented assistant of his is also on his way to Penn State officially. 

Leader of the QBs.

Welcome to Happy Valley, @CoachJWaters.#WeAre | https://t.co/qgCylIJinD pic.twitter.com/J0b2tw7mbi

— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) December 18, 2025

How Will Jake Waters Leaving Impact the QB Room?

With the quarterbacks coach leaving to follow coach Campbell to Penn State, it will be interesting to see the potential impact that it will have on the quarterback room for the Cyclones. Rocco Becht is one of the top names to watch for the program, with the transfer portal opening soon. 

If the opportunity is there to leave for the Nittany Lions as well and go with the coaches that he has been playing with for the last couple of years, it will certainly be tempting. With his positional coach going to Penn State as well now, that will likely only increase the chances of Becht potentially leaving. 

This is another good addition for Campbell to his coaching staff, which he has primarily been able to bring with him to Penn State. While Campbell is doing a strong job of getting things in place for his new team, Rogers still has some work to do for the Cyclones. 

The Washington State Cougars will be playing in a bowl game soon, and following that, there should be some more clarity and finalization of Rogers’ staff with the Cyclones. However, with Waters going to Penn State, the new coaching staff for Iowa State will have to work hard to keep Becht with the program.