(WHTM) — Penn State fans want answers this week after the Nittany Lions suffered their first loss to Wisconsin.
Penn State’s offense couldn’t move the ball, and the defense was stranded on the field in the fourth quarter.
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Head coach Matt Campbell and offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser took responsibility for calling too conservative a game, saying they felt like they had a big enough lead up 17-0.
“It’s always going to be Coach Campbell’s call, and I stand by whatever,” Mouser said. “Like he tells me what he wants to, and we had a call and I understood it too. Our defense was playing great up to that point, and we gave them momentum with the tipped-ball pick and didn’t feel like that was going to be a situation that, if we didn’t get it, we were going to put our defense in a bad spot. So I understood it. I’m always going to support whatever he wants to do, and he’s gotten here because his gut is rarely wrong.”
“The game flow, you felt like, you know, there were probably times in the football game where we were leaning into the flow of the game of what it was going into to make sure we didn’t screw it up early in the football game, rather than maybe attacking in some areas where we could have done a better job,” Campbell said.
Another notable question is the run game. It continues to struggle, and yet all four backs continue to be used. James Peoples led in rushing against the Badgers with 67 yards on 14 carries, but Campbell says they are still trying to find somebody to grab a stranglehold on the starting job.
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They’ve yet to see that happen. The Nittany Lions are back in action this Friday at Northwestern.
Penn State Football fans will get closer than ever to the team this fall with Nittany Nation & Nittany Insiders.
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Tune in to Nittany Nation every Saturday at 11:30 a.m. during football season for a breakdown of Penn State’s matchup and players looking to make an impact on and off the field. Check your local listings or watch on NittanyNationTV.com during the football season.
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You can also get the latest updates from Nittany Nation on X and Instagram.
Here’s a look at Penn State’s schedule for 2026:
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September 5 – vs. Marshall
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September 12 – at Temple
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September 19 – vs. Buffalo
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September 26 – vs. Wisconsin
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October 2 – at Northwestern
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October 10 – vs. USC
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October 17 – at Michigan
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October 31 – vs. Purdue
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November 7 – at Washington
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November 14 – vs. Minnesota
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November 21 – vs. Rutgers
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November 28 – at Maryland
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