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Biggest Takeaways, Notably Matt Campbell's Epiphany, From Penn State's Win at Washington

The Nittany Lions fought themselves but emerged with a second straight Big Ten win.
Mark Wogenrich|
Penn State Nittany Lions running back Carson Hansen (21) rushes against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium.
Penn State Nittany Lions running back Carson Hansen (21) rushes against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Penn State Nittany Lions

SEATTLE | Thoughts and second thoughts from a wild and lovely day at Husky Stadium, where Penn State impressed, overcame and ultimately saved itself in a 28-25 win over Washington. And yes, it's the Big Ten's most beautiful football venue.

First, though, save a moment for legendary Penn State linebacker Jack Ham, who was in stable condition Saturday night at University of Washington Medical Center after experiencing a medical emergency before the game. Ham serves as the football analyst for the Penn State Sports Network.

Matt Campbell's epiphany

Washington coach Jedd Fisch said out loud after the game what thousands of panicked Penn State fans at Husky Stadium feared in real-time. He expected the Huskies would complete a 22-point comeback to win.

“I was convinced after we got the two-point play and made it 28-25 that we were going to get a stop, get a score, win that game and have a pretty remarkable comeback," Fisch said.

Conversely, the Nittany Lions were livid having put themselves in that situation. An offense that scored touchdowns on four of its first five drives couldn't deliver its own knockout blow. And a defense that constricted Washington to three red-zone field goals suddenly was spun in circles by quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who led the Huskies to 16 points, two on a circus-like two-point conversion.

But then everyone on the Penn State sideline remembered the Wisconsin game in September, when the Nittany Lions gave up a 17-point lead and two second-half touchdowns (one on a miracle) to blow their Big Ten opener. Penn State coach Matt Campbell in particular resolved for that not to happen again, particularly from himself.

"I think that was my biggest undertaking was, I could have been better in some of those moments," Campbell said. "You're kind of just trying to scheme your way to the finish line. That ain't it. Go make a difference. Be the leader that they need you to be. And hopefully, I was able to be a little bit better today than I was against Wisconsin."

It was a raw reflection on the season from Campbell, who said three days after that Wisconsin game that he coached "not to screw it up." On Saturday in Seattle, Campbell saw symptoms of that loss creeping onto the sideline, notably what he called a "lack of poise by some young players on the sideline when things were turning," and moved to curb them.

That was clear late in the fourth quarter, when Campbell grabbed standout receiver Chase Sowell by the face for a moment of tough-love screaming after Sowell committed a personal foul responding to a targeting hit on quarterback Rocco Becht. Campbell loved the passion but hated how it manifested.

"First of all, as the head football coach, lead," Campbell said. "Don't sit back and just assume it's going to happen. I put that [on me] as much on anybody else, and so I thought the biggest thing for me is trying to help our guys regain their poise. Don't just want them to have poise. Go lead them to have some poise and help them get through it."

Campbell had that opportunity as the officials reviewed the hit on Becht for targeting. The head coach galvanized his offense and two plays later, Carson Hansen hit his biggest run of the season, a 36-yarder into Washington territory that iced the game.

For Campbell and Penn State, that might have been a turning-point play for the program. Against Wisconsin, the Nittany Lions failed to score points on their last five possessions of the game. They didn't score any points on their last drive against Washington, either, yet it might have been the most important series of the season.

Penn State's MVP: Carson Hansen

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Penn State Nittany Lions running back Carson Hansen celebrates after rushing for a touchdown against the Washington Huskies.
Penn State Nittany Lions running back Carson Hansen celebrates after rushing for a touchdown against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

During the bye week, running back Carson Hansen said, Penn State's offense talked long and hard about its run game, which was among the least intimidating in the Big Ten. Penn State rushed for just 181 yards combined in three games against Northwestern, USC and Michigan. Something had to change, Hansen said.

"We came together as an offense, and there were meetings where we said, 'Man, this has to be emphasized for our offense to be successful,'" Hansen said.

So Penn State stripped down its run-game focus, simplifying blocking schemes and plays and centered on two backs: Cam Wallace and Hansen. Wallace had the career game against Purdue, but Hansen generated 96 yards in support.

At Washington, rushing for a season-high 119 yards on just 14 carries, proving that he can be an explosive-play back. This was the Hansen Penn State expected to see all season, the back who finished his 2025 season at Iowa State with five straight 100-yard games. It just took longer to materialize.

Hansen often seemed to labor at the line of scrimmage, either too one-note at the point of attack or unable to break tackles. But at Washington, Hansen looked like a new back. He hit several cutback runs, looked shiftier and sealed the game with that huge 36-yarder late in the fourth quarter.

How Penn State changed its run game during the bye week obviously made a difference with Hansen, who recorded his highest grade of the season from Pro Football Focus (81.1).

"I think we helped him schematically, trying to pair the offensive line to what our tailbacks do best," Campbell said. "Again, there was a little bit of that, you're trying to find an answer. But I think once we said, 'Let's get good at something, let's get a foundation for these backs to get north and south, and let this offensive line have some confidence in what they're doing.' I think that really helped us."

Other stuff we saw at Washington

First, Husky Stadium is beautiful. There's a spot in the upper bleachers where fans can gaze at Lake Washington and the Cascades, then turn their heads and watch football. Spectacular.

Left tackle Malachi Goodman played just one snap in the second half, fighting through an injury that made him a game-time decision. Garrett Sexton played 30 snaps in his place and had an uneven game but recorded a PFF grade of 61.

Backup cornerback Ibn McDaniels deserved a game ball, and more playing time, after making a key second-half interception, McDaniels actually played the ball (underthrown by Williams) to deliver an important turnover. Penn State didn't turn it into points, but the play ended a potential Washington scoring drive.

McDaniels was on the field more as starting corner Audavion Collins appeared to get hurt. Collins played 38 snaps but was limited in the second half.

Wallace didn't get the major touches with Hansen running well but made them count. He finished with 56 yard on seven carries, recording 46 on an explosive first-half touchdown.

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is the editor and publisher of Penn State on SI, the site for Nittany Lions sports on the Sports Illustrated network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs, three Rose Bowls and one College Football Playoff appearance.

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