The then No. 13-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions suffered a 24-20 loss to the Wisconsin Badgers in Week 4. The Lions’ ideal unbeaten season hopes have officially come to an end, and the Nittany Lions’ loss is the first in the Matt Campbell era. They will now drop in the AP poll, and perspectives on them begin to change. To make matters worse, the Lions once led 17-0 in the game and seemed to have nothing to worry about. Maybe their struggles against the Temple Owls showed they were not legit, but few expected them to lose at home to the Badgers. With that being said, let’s take a look at what went wrong for the Lions.
What Went Wrong In the Nittany Lions’ Loss?
Rocco Becht Struggles
The first thing that went wrong for the Lions is Rocco Becht’s struggles behind center. Becht was 12/29 with 114 yards and one interception. He played by far his worst game as a Nittany Lion and ultimately did not get the job done against the Badgers. The one saving grace for Becht is that he was without his young star wide receiver, Koby Howard, who was “dinged up” against Buffalo and is expected to miss a few games. Still, Becht has to be more accurate and consistent for the Lions to win games.
Running Game Continues To Struggle
The next big thing that contributed to the Nittany Lions’ loss is the running game, again. The Lions have struggled to run the ball even against the weaker opponents they played so this does not necessarily come as a surprise, but that is a major concern for a team that is trying to contend. From five running backs, the Lions got just 119 rushing yards combined out of all of them. What makes this look bad is that a single running back can run for that in a game. If this run game does not improve, this could be another very long season for the Lions after a disastrous 2025.
Coaching Struggles, Offensive Line Concerns
The Lions looked forward to a new coach in the post-James Franklin era, but nothing has changed. The playcalling, specifically at the end of the game when the Lions drove down the field to win, was questionable. On nearly every play, they threw the ball in the end zone instead of trying to get 10-15 yards while they had a timeout to use. Campbell has also used the same struggling running back, Carson Hansen, a lot when, for the most part, James Peoples and Quinton Martin look significantly better.
As for the offensive line, they have really struggled to stand their ground, and that has a massive impact on why the Lions are struggling to run or even throw the football. It is still very early in the 2026 college football season and Campbell is only four games into his tenure as a Nittany Lion, but the Lions have not proven that they are a legit contender or that they have improved this season.
The Nittany Lions lost their first game of the season and will look to get back on track Friday night when they take on Northwestern. There is still time for the Lions to turn it around, but it will need to be fast and big changes for this team to truly contend in the Big Ten and beyond. Do you think the Lions will be okay or will they have a similar year to last year?
Main Image: Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images
