Meet Rocco Becht, the New Penn State Quarterback With 'Tight End Blood'

Becht played through a shoulder injury for Iowa State last season yet often puts his body on the line, his coaches say.

Iowa State Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht walks off the field after the Cyclones defeat the TCU Horned Frogs. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

STATE COLLEGE | Penn State offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser and quarterbacks coach Jake Waters were asked when they realized quarterback Rocco Becht was special during their time coaching him at Iowa State. Immediately, they recalled the same moment — Oct. 19, 2024, at Jack Trice Stadium. 

Undefeated and ninth-ranked Iowa State trailed UCF by five points with under 2 minutes left in regulation. Becht previously had thrown two pick-sixes in the game. But then he led a game-winning touchdown drive, scoring on a 1-yard sneak with 30 seconds remaining to lift Iowa State over UCF 38-35.

“The guy truly put the offense on his back,” Mouser said. “We had one last drive to beat UCF, we were undefeated at the time, we're 6-0, and he had one of those out-of-body experiences for me where the guy willed us down the field, snuck it in with [30] seconds left. But to overcome throwing two pick-sixes, one probably was this fault, the other one was a tip ball gone the other way. A lot of guys, that's hard to forget.”

RELATED: Five questions for Penn State coach Matt Campbell

ROCCO BECHT PUTS THE CYCLONES ON HIS BACK 🌪️#Big12FB | 📺 @CFBONFOX pic.twitter.com/dsqmJgCu1m

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) October 20, 2024

Becht's recovery process from offseason surgery

Becht is in line to be Penn State’s fourth full-time starting quarterback since 2016 after transferring from Iowa State. The former Cyclone amassed 9,209 passing yards, 64 passing touchdowns and 19 rushing touchdowns in his three seasons as the starter.  

Becht will be the most experienced starter in the FBS next year, as his 26 career wins are the most of any returning quarterback. However, he’s also looking to improve upon an uneven 2025 campaign, during which he battled an injury and finished with career lows in passing yards (2,584) and passing touchdowns (16) while tying his personal highs in interceptions (9) and sacks taken (21).

“He's one of the greatest leaders I've ever been around,” Penn State coach Matt Campbell said. “This poor guy had to play [last year] with a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder. He had to get shot up every Tuesday and Wednesday just to practice the last four weeks, and the guy gave us every chance to win every one of those games, every step of the way. [He’s] as competitive as any football player I've been around.”

"To me, I just felt like that was such a critical opportunity for him to finish his career with us and the start of Penn State football and to get somebody that I truly believed embodies what the excellence of this football program has stood for both on and off the field, and I think those things are critically important," Campbell added.

Despite the injury, Becht didn't miss a start last season. He then had offseason surgery on his left shoulder to repair the injury. Waters said that Becht is ahead of his rehab schedule but likely won't do much until about halfway through spring drills.

"He trains like a pro, he rehabs like a pro," Waters said. "And we're thinking he'll be able to throw in spring ball a little bit. Obviously, we won't put him in any harm's way or anything like that. But the schedule he's on now is that we'll be able to get him in some things during the spring."

A competitive personality

Iowa State Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht runs during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium. | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Becht's impressive statistics don’t just come from pure talent. Becht is as competitive as it gets. Mouser said he has a “competitive excellence” and is always the first to get to the facility and last to leave. Jokingly, Mouser added that Becht wants to win so badly that he cheats in golf. 

“He's a guy that until the last second ticks off, you're always going to feel like you have a chance,” Mouser said. “He's a guy when you're playing him in the driveway, it's like, all right, next goal wins, and then you win [and he wants to] run it back. He'll go until he wins.

“You're on the golf course with him, he'll find a way to win. He's a cheater in golf, and I've made that very public about talking about Rocco. I like to play golf. I like to play with those guys. [Tight end] Ben [Brahmer] is really good at golf, too. [Andrew Rappleyea] is supposed to be pretty good at golf, but Rocco's a guy you don't want to end up on the course with.”

'He's going to make everyone proud'

This is Happy Valley.#WeAre | @RoccoBecht pic.twitter.com/pMAA1IQH8B

— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) January 29, 2026

Waters said Becht is a “do whatever it takes” kind of player who will “put his body on the line for his team no matter what happens throughout the game.” The quarterbacks coach added that Becht is the type of quarterback you want on the field with the game on the line in a two-minute drill, even if he’s been struggling throughout the game. 

“[Penn State is] going to get a guy that's going to give anything and everything he has to be the best quarterback, the best leader and the best teammate for Penn State, and he's going to do things the right way,” Waters said. “He's going to make everyone proud on the field, off the field, in the community, everywhere else. So, yeah, [he’s a] great, great person, teammate and leader.”

“He's got tight end blood in him,” added Mouser. “His dad was a great tight end, so I was telling him, he's not a quarterback — he's a tight end that's playing quarterback. So he's got tight end blood in him where you have to be able to get your face pounded in a little bit and be able to bounce back. And he's a tough guy. He's a rub-dirt-on-it guy.”

What stuck out most to the staff about Moser weren’t traits like talent, resiliency or determination. It’s his leadership skills. Mouser said Becht makes a point to have a relationship with everybody on the team and that “you wouldn’t know he’s the starting quarterback just because of the smile, the attitude and unselfishness.” 

Mouser added that Becht has no ego and a big heart for the guys around him. He added that Becht is more of a lead-by-example athlete who has honest conversations with teammates because he’s taken the time to build those relationships. 

“He's around the facility all the time, but he's a guy that works,” Mouser said. “He's a guy that'll get hit the hardest and get up every time. So, like, ‘I'm taking [hits] out here, you better be tough enough to get through it, too.’ He's a great leader because of his connection to everybody that he is surrounded with on the team.”

What happens next for Penn State? Stay on top of all the Nittany Lions news by subscribing to the Penn State on SI Daily Digest. The newsletter is your free daily window into Penn State sports.