Penn State continues to retain critical pieces for its 2026 football roster under head coach Matt Campbell.
On Saturday night, freshman cornerback Jahmir Joseph announced that he will return to Penn State next year.
“Let’s do it 🦁!” Joseph said on social media with a “Run It Back” graphic created by the team.
Joseph was a consensus four-star prospect out of St. Joseph Regional High School in New Jersey and preserved his redshirt. He played against Nevada, Villanova, Northwestern, and Ohio State, but his breakout performance came against Clemson.
Joseph made five tackles and earned one pass breakup and one pass defended in a 22-10 victory over the Tigers in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. The 6-foot, 193-pound freshman only made two tackles in his first four career games.
He picked PSU over Notre Dame and Stanford as one of Penn State’s top recruits in the class of 2025, a key retention for Campbell and Terry Smith.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.There were questions and much doubt during the very bleak days of Penn State’s 54-day coaching search that the program could retain key talent.
The Nittany Lions have kept linebacker Tony Rojas, cornerbacks Daryus Dixson and Joseph, safety Dejuan Lane, running back Quinton Martin Jr., wide receiver Koby Howard, tight end Andrew Rappleyea, and offensive linemen Cooper Cousins and Anthony Donkoh.
Campbell and his staff have many roster spots to fill after over 30 players entered the portal or declared for the 2026 NFL Draft.
The transfer portal opened on Friday and remains open for a single window until January 16, with no spring transfer portal window this season.
Penn State is hosting former Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht on Saturday and will likely become the next starting quarterback in the program.
