1978’s Halloween is my favorite movie (I watch it every year on the best holiday), but one of my favorite bits is that the sequel is criminally underrated. Halloween II picks up immediately after the events of the original film and resumes the horrors of the same night for the community and main characters. It’s ninety-two minutes of a prolonged nightmare, with an unstoppable and terrifying force wreaking havoc across a small town.
In an absolutely jarring scene, a local unsuspecting townsperson (who has the misfortune of wearing a nearly identical costume to that of killer Michael Myers) gets mistakenly sandwiched by a police car into a van, igniting an immediate explosion.
Penn State football fans and I are the equivalent of that character, who was looking forward to a night of fall revelry and ends up (emotionally) destroyed into a pit of fiery despair.
A journey of seemingly never-ending dread, stretched across consecutive falls.
After last season, in which Penn State started the year with national title aspirations and didn’t get through October before it lost three straight games and fired the head coach who had been there for twelve years, 2026 was supposed to be the start of a new chapter. The ceiling had clearly been reached under James Franklin, and (after a prolonged, confusing, poorly executed search) Penn State was hoping a new architect in Matt Campbell could take over a foundation to raise it.
After an offseason of building goodwill, saying all the right things, and embracing the past, excitement and expectations were high for Campbell and Co. Even in a transition year, a favorable conference schedule set up the Lions well to have a strong start to the new coaching tenure.
Previously, a new staff would have a grace period to turn a program around. They needed time, proper recruiting cycles, and patience to build the program their way. Unfortunately for any coach starting a job today, Curt Cignetti broke fans’ and schools’ brains alike around expectations and championship timelines. Given Campbell was walking into a job that may have failed to reach elite heights, but had a very high floor, there would not be much leeway for turbulence. The new-look Nittany Lions, made up of a decent portion of Campbell’s former Cyclones, would have to gel with the existing Lions quickly.
Two games into conference play, the first season for Campbell and Penn State football has turned into a horror movie. For the second consecutive fall, Penn State’s playoff hopes are over before October—leaving a fan base and the team itself to reckon with the question: How do we escape this nightmare?
While a roster made up of a significant portion of players who had never played together before was always going to have some growing pains, the offense, in particular, was expected to provide more continuity. A starting QB, tight ends, running back, and multiple wide receivers followed the same offensive coordinator from Ames to State College. This was a group that had played with each other, in a familiar offensive scheme, and was expected to at least be stable and consistent. Through the first five games, and particularly the two most recent conference losses, the offensive tape should be rated NC-17 for excessive gore. Can you chalk it up to so many new parts? Or is the jump in play for the most important players from the Big 12 to the Big Ten that stark? Rocco Becht, in particular, has struggled. This was the most experienced quarterback in college football. The leader the offense would rely upon to ease the transition in Campbell’s first year. His stats in the first three non-conference games, compared to data against Wisconsin and Northwestern, are alarming.
Somehow, the “eye test” has been even worse. Becht is generously listed at 6’1” (the same generosity I used to give myself on dating apps), but is probably closer to 5’11” and has looked like a JV quarterback trying to throw over the defensive line the last two games. Defensive linemen have swatted down multiple passes in both games, and his ability to make clean throws in the pocket against larger defensive linemen in his new conference (known particularly for teams’ size and strength in the trenches) is something Campbell and his staff are going to have to figure out.
Penn State’s inability to run the ball has put the pressure on Becht to be the focal point of the offense, something he’s struggled with against his first taste of Big Ten competition.
The defense, led by new coordinator D’Anton Lynn, had been the stronger unit up until the fourth quarter against Wisconsin. That group’s fourth-quarter collapse carried immediately over into last Friday’s drubbing at Northwestern. In a game that never felt particularly close (something typically said during Penn State-Northwestern games, but in the inverse case), Penn State was absolutely slashed and gashed for over 400 yards on the ground. Penn State was so incompetent in defending the run that the Northwestern quarterback was barely forced to throw a pass in the second half. Lynn came down from the coordinator’s box in the second half, trying anything different to help the defense stop the bleeding. The new Ryan Field was christened as a murder site; here lies Penn State rush defense.
The Matt Campbell era started with excited optimism, but a few weeks from Halloween it has once again turned into a horror movie for Penn State fans.
The reality is there are no easy fixes or solutions the way both sides of the ball are playing right now. The return of electric wide receiver Koby Howard will only do so much. The last two games have shown the foundation underneath the program was ready for collapse. Campbell, a man who’s never been afraid to invoke a good cliché, and the Lions really do need to look at the process. They need to figure out a way to take the load off Becht’s arm, wake up the running game, and use his mobility to move the pocket. The defense needs to identify any way it can disrupt opponents’ running game, either through stunts or blitzes, to make offenses have to work harder in moving the ball. The time will come to address the clear talent issue (clearly a roster made up of a team that went 8-4 in the Big 12 was not going to cut it), but Saquon Barkley ain’t walking through that door.
The “White Out” game against USC, a team that has struggled on the road in its own transition to the Big Ten, is the perfect opportunity for the team and the fan base to wake up and find something to believe in again. There is not a top draft selection waiting at the end of a disastrous season. The ramifications of a bad season can send a program into a downward spiral with negative impacts in recruiting and fundraising.
Prove the culture is still strong in Happy Valley, one in which the players respond with a determined effort regardless of the score. Show a staff that has the ability to adapt and come up with solutions to clear shortcomings. Prove that Penn State is still a place players will want to play and develop, and that it won’t be disrupted by a tough start. Find the right mix of character and skill in recruiting and the portal. Prevent an exodus in the transfer window, and secure some momentum-generating commitments in the ’27 recruiting class. Campbell is clearly not going to have a Cignetti-like championship run, but that doesn’t mean the foundation can’t be set for an eventual next step for the program.
James Franklin’s fatal flaw was his inability to adapt and truly learn from mistakes and blind spots running the program. Campbell is a different man, but he has his first real test to show he doesn’t possess those same flaws. Talent acquisition must clearly be a priority in the offseason, but at a minimum he (and the coordinators Taylor Mouser and Lynn) must make adjustments to get better performances from their players. This team should not have lost to Wisconsin, and certainly not gotten embarrassed by Northwestern.
With seven games left, there is plenty of time for Campbell and Penn State to change the ending to the sequel. A win in the “White Out” vs. USC would go a long way.
I’m not sure anyone in State College could survive a trilogy. Halloween III: Season of the Witch vs. Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is the equivalent of Georgia-Alabama for third movies in a horror canon.
Brutal assessment!