The Best Notes, Quotes and Anecdotes From Penn State's Win Over Temple

What we saw and heard during and after the Nittany Lions' 27-9 victory over the Owls.

Penn State Nittany Lions coach Matt Campbell (left) shakes hands with Temple Owls coach K.C. Keeler following the game at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State football moved up two spots to No. 14 in the AP Top 25 after its 27-9 win over Temple that nevertheless had players and coaches leaving Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field underwhelmed. Nittany Lions coach Matt Campbell even sounded a bit irritated after the game.

Penn State (2-0) didn't grade out nearly as well as it did following a 45-0 win over Marshall in the season opener. And there were some negative takeaways from the postgame. To recap, here are some of the most interesting notes, quotes and anecdotes from the game.

What they said after the Penn State-Temple game

Penn State coach Matt Campbell says DE Max Granville will be out for the season with an injury. Granville played the opener vs. Marshall after missing the 2025 season. pic.twitter.com/2Cnq96vVAo

— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) September 12, 2026

Campbell let some frustration escape during his postgame interview session, particularly regarding Penn State's scoreless first quarter. The Nittany Lions had two possessions inside the Temple 10-yard line but didn't score.

“I don’t think there’s any explanation other than we didn’t play very well,” Campbell said. “We didn’t play very well in the first half or the first quarter of the game offensively. I think you go back and you look at those three runs down in the red zone. They’re all there.

“... We’re off by an inch, but it’s a game of inches. And especially when you play on the road, you have to have great execution. We didn’t do it. And then defensively, we give up two 40-yard plays because of lack of detail. Where does that start? I think it has to start withthe head football coach, right? Then it goes to our coaches, and then our players, and accountability."

Campbell on Penn State's response, scoring 27 unanswered points: "I would just say that’s probably the proudest that I can be, and it’s what I told our guys in the locker room. I felt like nobody flinched, nobody wavered. There was no complaining. And I think some of that can easily happen, but the reality is all three phases kind of faltered earlier."

Penn State quarterback Rocco Becht on the 2-minute drill that led to a touchdown before halftime: "I think what really gets us going is you know two-minute situations. I feel like that's what gets me going, gets me in a groove. We had a couple of those in the past back at Iowa State, and to get to continue to throw the ball rep after rep, I think gets gets me in a good groove, and that's what we did. We saw that, and we're able to come back out in the third quarter and continue that."

Linebacker Tony Rojas on the defense allowing six plays of 15+ yards: "In our eyes, we didn't have a great game, and coach Campbell realized that and us players did, too."

"In our eyes, we didn't have a great game" - @Tony_Rojas5 is blunt in his assessment of the PSU defense, says not giving up a lot of points still doesn't meet their standards @NittanyGameWeek #pennstate pic.twitter.com/X786CUIZDO

— Todd Sadowski (@ToddFox43) September 13, 2026

Temple coach K.C. Keeler on Penn State: "They're a good football team. They took apart Marshall pretty good, and I tink they'll have a successful season in the Big Ten. Our kids fought but unfortunately we had to play cleaner to get the job done."

Keeler on playing shorthanded offensively: "There were four offensive linemen who we thought would be starters who didn’t play. When we looked atr their tape defensively, we said, 'Wow, they can run.' [Rojas] is all over the field. [They have] five edge rushers who drive you crazy and two big kids. The offense had to be reconfigured a bit based on the fact that we were banged up on the offensive line."

Temple quarterback Jaxon Smolik on playing against his former team: "It was cool playing against them, but at the end of the day it's business. It's another game. I have to focus on not the emotional aspect but playing another team in the road. After the game seeing those guys was cool. but durting the game it was all business."

Temple Owls quarterback Jaxon Smolik (14) runs with the ball during the first quarter against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Notes and numbers from the Penn State-Temple game

Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Rocco Becht (3) looks to throw a pass during the first quarter against the Temple Owls at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After two games, Becht leads the Big Ten in passer efficiency rating (227.5) and ranks third in completion percentage (75.6 percent). He also leads the conference in yards per passing attempt (12).

Five different Nittany Lions have caught touchdown passes, with tight end Ben Brahmer topping the list (three). Receiver Chase Sowell caught his first touchdown pass of the season Saturday.

Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten behind USC in pass plays of 20+ yards (12).

What's the deal Penn State running back Quinton Martin Jr.? He didn't play an offensive snap in the game and has just one first-half carry this season. It's especially curious after Campbell sang his praises during the preseason.

Rojas led the Nittany Lions in tackles for the second straight week (seven). He also recorded his fifth career interception and first since the 2024 season.

Penn State did not allow a touchdown through the first 118:04 of the season. Temple scored a touchdown with 1:56 remaining in the game.

Linebacker Josh Banks became the eighth true freshman to play for Penn State this season.

The top anecdotes from Saturday's game

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Matt Campbell (left) shakes hands with Temple Owls head coach K.C. Keeler (following the game at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Rojas intercepted Smolik in the first quarter on what appeared to be a deft read of the quarterback's eyes. Turns out, Rojas said he got lucky.

The linebacker was supposed to blitz on the play but didn't think he'd get there and changed course. Then he dropped back into the lane where Smolik was throwing. Smolik, who was in Rojas' recruiting class at Penn State and knows him well, didn't buy the luck claim.

"It was a Will [linebacker] blitz, and he did a good job seeing what we were doing and he dropped out of the blitz and got [the interception]," Smolik said. "It was a good play by him."

Fans probably winced when Becht took a late in the fourth quarter. But did you know that the player who hit him played for Penn State last season? Safety Kolin Dinkins is one of four Nittany Lions who transferred to Temple. Smolik started at quarterback, and Kaleb Artis made one tackle on defense. Tight end Joey Schlaffer did not play.

Becht played high school football in Florida but has a lot of family near Philadelphia, since his father Anthony is from Drexel Hill and graduate from Monsignor Bonner High. So his local fan base showed out Saturday.

"Apparently I had a lot [of family and friends at the game]," Becht said. "I was told there were about 500 people here from my dad's side and probably people I haven't met."

Temple recognized its 2016 AAC championship team during halftime. Former coach Matt Rhule, now at Temple, recorded a video message, and Penn State Athletic Director Pat Kraft was in the end zone for the moment. Kraft was Temple's athletic director that season.

Sign up to our free Penn State Nittany Lions newsletter, follow us on social media and add Penn State on SI as a Preferred Source on Google.