Penn State head coach Matt Campbell opened up about all the players and staff who followed him to the program this offseason.
The Penn State Nittany Lions were able to kick off the Matt Campbell era with a massive 45-0 win over Marshall, opening the year on a high note.
Campbell came over to Penn State following a long tenure under former head coach James Franklin. But it wasn't easy for Campbell to leave his former school, Iowa State.
At Iowa State, Campbell saw a lot of success. But the appeal of being the head coach at Penn State was just too much to pass on.
Multiple players, coaches, staff, etc, came to Penn State with Campbell, taking a leap of faith with the head coach. And so far, that faith has been justified in Happy Valley.
His first game with the Nittany Lions was special, with the team playing well at all levels. But it was the work behind the scenes that allowed this moment to come to pass for Campbell and his team.
After the game, Campbell was asked about all the players, families, staff, etc who joined him at Penn State. The new Nittany Lions head coach was ecstatic to receive this question, giving credit to everyone for helping to get this first win in the new era of the program
"It's been a long road, there's a lot of young families that picked up and moved across the country because of their belief in what we were doing together. That had nothing to do with me; that was a we thing. And I think what's always been great is we're been always a great team together, and I'm so grateful for them because they set the standard. They helped demand the standard of excellence in all of our areas, and they've done such a great job developing real relationships with our players so far and really holding a great standard to our program," Campbell said.
The new coach has made waves so far with this program, and this could end up being one of the best parts of his tenure. Penn State is hopeful that he remains the head coach for a long time, and he has been acting like he wants to be around for a while too.
This first win was a strong one, and the Nittany Lions could end up surprising some people this season. Penn State has a fairly easy schedule this season, and that could see them potentially make some noise in the Big Ten.
The Campbell era could end up being a really good one, and he has proven himself as a coach in college football. But now he has the resources and backing from a program like Penn State, which could transform everything.
