Rocco Becht shines with 4 TDs as No. 18 Penn State beats Marshall 45-0

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Rocco Becht threw for 271 yards with four touchdowns and No. 18 Penn State beat Marshall 45-0 to begin the Matt Campbell era on Saturday.

Becht, a transfer who followed Campbell from Iowa State to Happy Valley, was in command in his Beaver Stadium debut and secured his FBS-leading 27th win as a starter.

“I think everyone was kind of worried about the unknown, like what was going to happen today? What was it going to look like?” Becht said. “And we came out today and I felt we did really great operationally, really good as a team communication-wise. For me, it was just taking it one play at a time.”

He had plenty of help from familiar teammates who also left the Cyclones, and a host of new ones who stuck around after former coach James Franklin was fired midway through last season.

Koby Howard, one of those holdovers who was used sparingly by the previous staff, had six catches for 161 yards with a touchdown. Brett Eskildsen, Benjamin Brahmer and Zay Robinson caught touchdown passes, and new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn’s defense held Marshall to just 147 yards.

“Just going out there and being able to actually showcase it in a game meant a lot to me,” Howard said.

The Thundering Herd (0-1) crossed midfield just three times, one thanks to a facemask penalty against Penn State.

Meanwhile, Becht’s first victory in blue and white was full of highlights.

After the Nittany Lions (1-0) took the lead with a 38-yard field goal from Ryan Barker on their opening possession, Becht settled in, showing no ill effects from offseason surgery to repair a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder.

Becht took his time in the pocket and found Howard cutting over the middle for a 42-yard touchdown pass, then steered into Marshall territory again before tossing a short screen pass to Eskildsen, who burst through two strong blocks to make it 17-0.

Brahmer hauled in an 8-yard throw that made it 24-0. Becht went downfield again on his next series, this time to Robinson, who outran Marshall defenders for a 39-yard score.

Quinton Martin Jr. and Cam Wallace added rushing touchdowns.

“It was really special to be a part of this for the first time,” Campbell said. “I know so many people have said how special it is to play football here, but it was really special to coach here today. The environment was second to none.”

Carlos Del Río-Wilson completed 17 of 25 passes for 102 yards for Marshall.

“Embarrassing all the way around today, offense, defense, special teams,” Marshall coach Tony Gibson said. “Couldn’t get anything going. When we did, we had penalties early, killed some drives. Not my expectation, not the kids’ expectation and that’s not an indication of who we are, but that’s who we were today.”

The takeaway

Marshall: The Thundering Herd, picked by Sun Belt coaches to finish third in the conference’s East Division, tackled well and played a mostly clean game. They just couldn’t keep up with Penn State’s speed on the outside.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions entered as more than three-touchdown favorites and looked even better despite all the newness. They committed just four penalties with zero turnovers.

Up next

Marshall: Hosts Middle Tennessee State on Saturday.

Penn State: Visits Temple on Saturday.

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