What We Know About Matt Campbell's Offensive Staff at Penn State

Campbell is bringing his offensive coordinator and line coach from Iowa State.

Matt Campbell is announced as the Penn State Nittany Lions new head coach during a press conference at Beaver Stadium. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Penn State football coach Matt Campbell is bringing in a new offensive staff, one that will include several of his coaches at Iowa State. Most notably, Campbell appears to be hiring Taylor Mouser as offensive coordinator. a role Mouser held the past two seasons at Iowa State.

Penn State has made no official staff announcments, though, as first reported by Greg Pickel of Blue-White Illustrated, Mouser is listed in the university directory under the title "offensive coordinator."

Mouser has worked with Campbell for 11 years, dating to the 2015 season at Toledo, where Campbell was the head coach and Mouser was a graduate assistant. Mouser would replace Andy Kotelnicki, who was Penn State's offensive coordinator for two seasons.

In addition, the university directory lists Ryan Clanton as Penn State's offensive line coach, repacing Phil Trautwein. Three members of Penn State's offensive staff have departed for other jobs: Tight ends coach Ty Howle is joining James Franklin's staff at Virginia Tech, reportedly as offensive coordinator; quarterbacks coach Danny O'Brien is taking the same role at Virginia Tech; and running backs coach Stan Drayton is leaving after one season for South Carolina.

Here's what we know about Penn State's new offensive coaches.

Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser

Iowa State Cyclones offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser talks to the media in Ames, Iowa. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK

In his first season as an offensive coordinator, Mouser led the Cyclones to one of their most productive seasons in history. In 2024, Iowa State averaged 31.1 points per game, fifth-best in school history, as part of its first 11-win season.

Quarterback Rocco Becht threw for 3,505 yards, and two Iowa State receivers (Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel) ranked among the top-6 in the Big 12 in receptions and receiving yards per game.

This season, Iowa State averaged 27.4 points per game, with Becht throwing for 2,584 yards, 16 touchdowns and a 60.5-percent completion rate. Carson Hansen ranked third in the Big 12 in rushing (952 yards) and averaged 5 yards per game.

Mouser also coached tight ends at Iowa State, a position group he likely will take over at Penn State. He began his tenure at Iowa State as a graduate assistant in 2016 before moving to the scouting department for two years and then onto the offensive staff in 2019. Mouser coached Iowa State's tight ends for five seasons.

"Taylor has been an integral part in the success of our program through the years, working his way up from graduate assistant to this position as offensive coordinator," Campbell said in a 2024 statement announcing Mouser's promotion. "He is well-respected by both our staff and our players and has earned this opportunity. I have great confidence in him and look forward to seeing him in this role."

Offensive line coach Ryan Clanton

Iowa State Cyclones offensive line coach Ryan Clanton talks to players during the university's Spring Football game at Jack Trice Stadium. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK

Clanton was Iowa State's offensive line coach for three seasons and the run-game coordinator the past two. His line paved the way for Iowa State's 25 rushing touchdowns in 2024, the fourth-highest total in school history. Iowa State averaged 160 yards rushing per game in 2024, up from 119 the previous season.

Campbell hired Clanton from Northern Iowa, where he worked for five seasons. Clanton began his tenure at Northern Iowa as the offensive line coach and became the program's co-offensive coordinator in 2023.

Clanton played offensive line for three seasons at Oregon during head coach Chip Kelly's tenure. Prior to that, he was a Junior College All-American at City College of San Francisco.

"[Clanton] had great success as a player, competing at a high level, and is someone that has had a significant impact on the players he has coached," Campbell said in a 2023 statement about hiring Clanton at Iowa State. "He's helped send multiple players to the NFL and I believe he'll have a tremendous impact on our program as well."

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