Gabe Burkle waited longer than expected to make his Penn State debut.
After an injury limited the veteran tight end throughout fall camp and kept him out of Penn State’s season opener against Marshall, Burkle finally returned to the field Saturday against Temple.
His role was limited, but for a player who has spent much of the past several months working his way back, getting onto the field represented an important first step.
Burkle played 20 snaps in Penn State’s 27-9 victory, according to Nittany Sports Now’s snap-count breakdown.
PFF charted him for 19 offensive snaps, with 17 coming as a blocker. He didn’t receive a target, but his 72.6 pass-blocking grade was encouraging, and he did not allow a pressure.
For Penn State, getting Burkle healthy adds another dimension to an already deep tight end room.
The 6-foot-6, 247-pound redshirt senior arrived at Penn State after four seasons at Iowa State.
His most productive season came in 2025 when he caught 26 passes for 302 yards and a touchdown in nine games. That followed a 26-catch, 296-yard season in 2024.
But Burkle’s value isn’t limited to catching passes.
Head coach Matt Campbell called Burkle the “best blocking tight end in the country” during Big Ten Media Days, and Burkle takes pride in doing the dirty work that doesn’t necessarily show up in a box score.
His first Penn State action reflected that role.
Of his 17 blocking snaps against Temple, 11 came in the running game and six in pass protection. Burkle finished with a 54.9 PFF run-blocking grade, but his work protecting Rocco Becht was considerably stronger.
Now the challenge is expanding his role to be a vertical threat, and continue his excellence as a run and pass blocker.
Burkle’s return also comes as Penn State continues trying to solve a running game that hasn’t completely found its rhythm through two weeks.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“We know that’s something we want to be better at, for sure,” Burkle said. “After watching the film, I think it’s not anyone’s fault. You can’t really blame it on one person or one position group.”
That accountability extends directly to his position.
Burkle pointed to the tight ends, offensive line and running backs as groups that each have improvements to make. More importantly, he doesn’t believe Penn State is far from putting the pieces together.
“We want to be able to run the ball whenever we want to run the ball,” Burkle said. “I don’t think we’re far off at all. There’s just a few things that we need to change.”
For Burkle, being part of fixing those details could become his path toward a larger role.
There is another element he brings that can’t be measured through PFF grades or snap counts and that is the experience Burkle possesses.
Burkle has played in Matt Campbell’s program for five years. He understands what Campbell wants the identity of his team to look like, and when Penn State honors its 1986 national championship team Saturday at Beaver Stadium, Burkle knows exactly what he hopes those former Nittany Lions see.
“A hard-nosed football team,” Burkle said. “Physical, together, happy for everyone.”
He described a sideline where players are cheering for teammates regardless of who is getting the snaps—a mentality that could be important for Burkle himself as his workload gradually increases.
His first game wasn’t about catches or touchdowns, it was about getting back.
Now, after finally putting on the Penn State uniform in a game, Burkle has an opportunity to become another veteran piece in an offense still searching for its complete identity.
And if Penn State wants to become the physical, hard-nosed team Burkle described, his ability to contribute at the line of scrimmage could become increasingly valuable.
