news-engine

Kashif Moore would have been facing an uphill battle even in normal circumstances. He took over as Penn State’s wide receivers coach in late February after Noah Pauley departed for the Green Bay Packers following less than two months on the job. That gave him about a month to get to know his players before spring ball started and he had to send them out on the field. But it doesn’t help that many of the players in the room also didn’t have a long-standing relationship with each other. The group was a mix of transfers from Iowa State, other teams and holdover players from the Nittany Lions. Moore had to bring them all together, while also evaluating them — and overcoming a stigma on the recruiting trail after Penn State’s receivers have floundered in recent years. But now, nearly six months into his tenure as Penn State’s wide receivers coach, Moore is primed to lead the position to a resurgence and prove that the lack of productivity is a thing of the past. That starts with this year’s group, led by Iowa State transfers Chase Sowell and Brett Eskildsen, who both had 500-plus yards with the Cyclones last year in a passing offense that was hampered by an injury to starting quarterback Rocco Becht. Both have the upside to be the top option for a now-healthy Becht this year. And they both should be difference makers for the Nittany Lions this year. “Chase’s last step from good to elite — because he has elite ability — is consistency,” Penn State coach Matt Campbell said at local media day. “The ability to be the best game in, game out, moment in, moment out. That’s what you would hope for a fourth-year player that you’ve got the opportunity to finally put those final, final pieces of the puzzle together. I think Brett does the same thing. … Last year you kind of saw him take the next step. Made some huge plays down the field. … I think those two guys give you proven reps that they can do it. Can they do it at the consistency now that the great ones look like.” But it’s about more than just the top two. Moore needs to get the most out of other players too. Like Zay Robinson, who has plenty of talent but needs to find consistency, and Koby Howard, who needs to do the same. And he needs to develop a freshman like Amarion Jackson, who has come on strong in his first offseason of college. Because his ability to develop isn’t just about this year’s roster — it’s about the future of the position at Penn State and the type of talent he can bring in. Future recruits are watching how he develops the talent in the room, and big steps forward in production in 2026 could lead to big steps forward in talent in future years. And Moore, who grew up in the region, knows what the Penn State brand can do for him on the recruiting trail, and what the success of Campbell’s previous offenses can do. “Being a kid from New Jersey, there’s nothing bigger than Penn State,” Moore said after practice Thursday. “Now, obviously, it’s tough. Like you’re at the top of the top. Big Ten football is the best conference in college football, so I’m competing against the Ohio State’s, the Michigan’s, and we take that challenge. And we do everything that we can to show these guys why this is the place for them.” That doesn’t mean players will blindly choose Penn State because of the program’s history, or because of what Campbell did somewhere else or even because of what Moore has done as a coach. The history most recruits know is far more recent than the history the 37-year-old Moore knew growing up, and it’s usually more pertinent than most things in recruiting — outside of money. And that history is much less positive, and is something he’s already combating with. “Absolutely,” Moore said when asked if he’s combating a negative stigma while recruiting. “And I think that’s obvious. Like when you look at some of the past statistics, the production just wasn’t there, right? And it’s my job, to take that challenge on and just get them to think otherwise. I wasn’t a part of the past, and neither was anyone on this staff. So it’s my job to overcome those challenges.” But, as Moore alluded to, it doesn’t have to stay that way. While he can lean on his own background and the staff’s background for now, he can go out and have his players put the evidence on display this year to show what he can do at Penn State. And if all goes well for the Nittany Lions, that recent history will become very different — and very positive — by the end of 2026. And Moore will likely be at the center of why it happens.