Blame Whoever You Want, But Penn State Fans Can't Blame Tony Rojas

We can place a lot of blame on Penn State for how the season has gone, and if people wanted to mention guys from top to bottom, including coaches, coordinators, Rocco Becht, and anybody in between, I probably wouldn't disagree. 

However, if there's one player on this roster who doesn't deserve any of the blame, it's star linebacker Tony Rojas.

Rojas, who dealt with an injury during the 2025 season, has now been a four-year player for the Nittany Lions. He's been one of the biggest fan favorites in Happy Valley and deserves all the love he gets from this fan base.

While Penn State's season hasn't gone as planned, none of that is Rojas' fault. He's been just as good as anybody could have imagined this season, posting 55 tackles, five sacks, a forced fumble, and two interceptions. 

His impact has been felt even beyond those stats on the defensive side of the football, with an argument to be made that he's been among the most impactful defensive players in all of college football this season.

“Rojas was a multi-year starter at the heart of multiple quality defenses. Still, coming off a season-ending injury in 2025, it was hard to know how good he’d be in 2026 as he adjusted to D’Anton Lynn’s system and learned to play alongside Kooper Ebel and Cael Brezina.

“Well, Rojas has simply been one of the most impactful defensive players in the country with 55 tackles, five sacks, 10.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, and a forced fumble. His sideline-to-sideline speed has returned, and he’s by far the team’s most effective blitzer. He’s exceeded the lofty standard that he’s set throughout his career,” Josh Yourish wrote.

It's promising to see Rojas playing at this level despite the defense not being up to standard. However, it also raises the question of whether Matt Campbell got lucky by sticking around. 

Rojas has proven over the past couple of years that he can be a legitimate starter at any other college program in the country, though his ACL tear during practice in September of last season may have played a role in his decision to return to the Nittany Lions.

Regardless, Penn State is in a very good spot because of what the 21-year-old from Fairfax, Virginia, has done, and it should be grateful he's an even better leader.

It'll be interesting to see if he can help change things in the W/L column, but even if he doesn't I have faith in saying Rojas won't be the reason why.