University Park, Pa. – Penn State head coach Matt Campbell got his first Big Ten conference win as the Nittany Lions defeated Purdue 31-17.
Here is everything Campbell said postgame:
Opening Statement
Matt Campbell: “I want to start by saying this to our fans who were here today. I thought, man, the energy in that stadium for our football team was awesome. I really just can’t thank them enough.
“So I wanted to start off and certainly say that they were incredible. But with that, any questions you have, we’ll start.”
On the Effectiveness of the Running Game and Cam Wallace’s Increased Role
Question: Can you talk about why the running game was able to be so effective today and what went into the extensive usage of Cam that we hadn’t seen as much in recent weeks?
Campbell: “Yeah, I think I’ve said it to you guys multiple times. You’ve got to earn the right to play, and Cam had an incredible two weeks. He has continued to stay the course, and how he’s practiced has earned him the right to go in and not just play, but honestly take advantage of his opportunity.
“That’s what I’m really excited about. I thought both of those guys, Carson and Cam, they were a one-two punch tonight, looking like what we want to become here as we continue to grow ourselves forward.
“In the run game, I think simplifying what we do, allowing us to fundamentally adapt to what our backs and our offensive line can do well, and really grow from there.
“So I thought it was a great start and a great opportunity for us to continue to grow forward.”
On Penn State’s Run Defense
Question: How would you evaluate your run defense, and what did it take for them to be so successful today?
Campbell: “Well, I think it’s twofold. I think, first, we were able to do a better job on first down, which really helped us.
“As we evaluated ourselves, we looked at how we could continue to be better on first-and-10 situations.
“I think the second thing is getting out and playing with the lead helps that opportunity as well.
“And then I think the third piece of it is those are things we really wanted to work on over the last two weeks. Running the ball and stopping the run. What are we doing and not doing, both schematically and fundamentally, that can help us?
“I give a lot of credit to our coaches. I think they did a great job with the game plan, but I think they also did a great job fundamentally correcting some areas that we were just a hair off on over the last couple of weeks.
“I think we took a step in the right direction this week.”
On Finishing the Season Strong and Building a Foundation
Question: How important is it to finish this season strong to establish the foundation of the program you’re trying to build, starting here with your first Big Ten win?
Campbell: “Yeah, to me, finishing is about what these seniors are about, right?
“This senior class has been through a lot, no matter how you slice it. Whether they came here or they stayed here, it’s been a lot of change.
“The reason why we’re sitting here today in late October, ready to get to November, and you have a tough four-game losing streak, and some of those games you have every opportunity to win and you don’t, this group’s never wavered.
“They’ve never flinched. They haven’t bitched, whined or complained. They’ve just gone to work and tried like heck to correct the areas and grow themselves forward.
“I wouldn’t say everybody in that locker room has done it, but I’d say the vast majority has.
“I think you saw that tonight, and I think it’s exciting for this group because it is really the culture we’re trying to create here.
“You win with team. You win with not paying attention to the outside noise. You win with having the ability to stay focused on your craft, and you win with team football.
“Tonight, we played team football for four quarters, which was great to see.
“We’ll see if we can continue to go forward. I think there will be great challenges for us and great opportunities ahead of us.”
On Playing Without Chase Sowell and Koby Howard
Question: What was Chase Sowell’s situation today that prevented him from playing? And how do you feel the offensive staff did game-planning without Chase and Koby Howard available?
Campbell: “Yeah, I thought they did a really great job from a game-planning standpoint.
“I think Chase is really close. I think Koby’s really close. It would be great to get those guys back.
“But man, I thought Amarion stepped up. Another young man who has really showcased himself in practice over the last couple of weeks and was waiting for his opportunity.
“I kind of think that’s what offensive football is. You have a good player go down, the next guy’s got to step up.
“I thought the tight ends stepped up in a great way, and obviously the running game helped that, too.
“And I thought Rocco was outstanding. I thought he played the type of football that we’ve seen him play a lot of, but he played it for four quarters and really did a great job with his consistency.
“Again, I think a lot of credit goes to him. It’s funny, every time a great player goes down, that guy continues to be the focal point of why the offense keeps moving the football down the field.
“So I’m really happy for him, too. I thought he played a great football game.”
On the Fake Punt and Blocked Punt
Question: Did you come into this game thinking you wanted to call a fake early, or did the opportunity just present itself? And on the blocked punt, how did you see that play unfold from your perspective?
Campbell: “Yeah, I wasn’t happy with the two calls prior to the blocked punt, so that probably didn’t help me stay focused in the moment.
“On the blocked punt, obviously, there was a breakdown in the protection. We’ve got great young men that we trust on that unit, and we’re going to have to get it corrected.
“I think the biggest thing was how we responded once the blocked punt happened, which I thought was huge in the game.
“And then the fake punt was based on what you saw from the defense and the opportunity to maybe steal an extra possession in the football game.
“Again, Coach Lustig does a great job with our special teams. It was great execution.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“Thank goodness we’ve got an Aussie, so that underhand pitch looked pretty sweet. And then we did a great job finishing on it.”
On the Postgame Locker Room and Getting the First Big Ten Win
Question: What were the emotions like in the postgame locker room? Was there a sense of relief that you guys had finally broken through in the Big Ten?
Campbell: “Yeah, I don’t know. To me, win or lose, I’m pretty similar, to be quite honest with you.
“I think for our kids, there is joy when you put the time, effort and energy in and you’re able to come away with the outcome.
“I think, for me as the head coach, I’ve watched this team grow every single week.
“There’s not been a week that this group hasn’t grown. Maybe Northwestern was a setback, but from that point on, this group has done an unbelievable job growing itself forward.
“For me, especially the last two weeks in practice, I just felt a different energy coming off the Michigan game.
“To watch this team be rewarded with a win, and not only a win, but playing its best four quarters together in team football, that part’s exciting.
“It’s great for those guys to earn the right to celebrate tonight, get ourselves back and see where we can take this thing.”
On the Pass Interference No-Call and Penalties
Question: What was explained to you on that long pass where there was no interference call? Is that what you were alluding to earlier? Also, you guys had a couple of after-the-play penalties.
Campbell: “Yeah, we’ll have to evaluate all of it.
“On that play, they said it was bang-bang and they didn’t feel like he impeded the opportunity for the ball to unclear.
“However that looks or whatever that is, I’m sure we’ll send it in and get more clarity. But they did communicate.
“And those other ones, I think we’re just going to have to evaluate what they were and how we do a great job cleaning that up.
“Obviously, I think we’ve done a great job not being penalized, but there were a lot of those tonight.
“It’ll be really hard for us to win, especially on the road, getting penalized like that.”
On Cam Wallace Earning His Opportunity
Question (Audrey): I know you’re aware of some of Cam Wallace’s story, and you said he’s had a few good weeks of practice. Was there a moment within the last couple of weeks when you thought, ‘We’ve got to get this guy on the field,’ or felt comfortable doing so? What changed?
Campbell: “Yeah, Audrey, I think last Tuesday and Thursday, in the bye week, inside runs, scrimmage opportunities, this guy was the shining star.
“I said it Wednesday in our team meeting. I said it Thursday, and then we went out to practice again on Thursday, and again, he was the shining star.
“To not be the guy playing and then come out and demand to play, and make us play him.
“I said going into Sunday’s meeting to our staff, ‘He’s going to play. This guy’s earned the right to get on the field.’
“If you saw Cam tonight, earned the right to play. He had the same kind of momentum for himself and had some really great plays.
“And that’s college football, right? I think we get lost thinking it’s professional, but it’s not.
“It’s 18- to 22-year-olds growing, and the resiliency of who he is and what he’s about, I think that is kind of the spirit of what we need on the football team. We need more of it.
“I think it’s been really awesome for him to get rewarded tonight with the game that he had.
“I think it’s going to create great momentum for himself going forward. But I’m really proud of him.
“Again, a guy who took advantage of his opportunity and made the most of it tonight.”
On the Defense Responding to Adversity
Question (Bob): You get the roughing-the-passer call when you think you’re going to come off the field, and then your defense responds with an interception from Jameson that leads to a field goal. How big was that sequence in the game?
Campbell: “Yeah, I feel like there were so many of those tonight, right?
“I felt at different times in the second half of a couple of these games, when things were going against us, we folded.
“We didn’t have the ability to respond, for whatever reason, whether it was coaching or whatever.
“At Michigan, I saw this group respond, and to me, it gained some momentum for itself.
“And it was team, right? Like you said, defensively, that was a great situation.
“The blocked kick, you can easily see the momentum. It’s a tie game, right? I think it’s 14-14 after the blocked kick. We go right down the field and score points.
“To me, those are areas where we’re growing.
“Again, that’s not in the stat line. That’s not in the flashy stuff. But that’s what I’ve watched with this team.
“It’s started to become a real team and play for each other and demand a pathway forward no matter what happens.
“That is what we set out to build here and build the right foundation on.
“We are growing in those moments, and there are going to be more challenges and more opportunities to grow forward. We’ll have to continue to get better.
“I think as great as it is to have some of these stats tonight, there’s still a lot to clean up.
“The penalties, we had a couple of missed opportunities, and if we don’t clean those things up, we won’t be able to be the team we have the ability to be going down the stretch.”
