Penn State adding Jake Waters to Matt Campbell's staff in quarterbacks coach role

Penn State is hiring former Iowa State assistant Jake Waters to be the quarterbacks coach in State College. BWI’s Nate Bauer first reported on Campbell’s plan to hire Waters on Sunday.

Waters has held the same role in Ames under new Nittany Lions head coach Matt Campbell since 2024 and has been on the Cyclones’ staff since 2021. He is also a former PSU recruiting target. Bill O’Brien looked at Waters years ago before he ultimately ended up at Kansas State, coming out of Iowa Western Community College.

“Jake is a valuable and talented member of our coaching staff and we are excited to see him in this new role,” Campbell said in 2024 when first promoting Waters from an off-field assistant role to running backs coach. He later got the QB coach job before the 2024 season.

“He has earned this opportunity because of his hard work and the impact he’s made during his four seasons with the program. His experience on our staff will make this a seamless transition for him and our team as he moves into this position.”

Waters will coach the Lions passers alongside program letterman Trace McSorley. He expects to return to Penn State in 2026 in a similar role to the one he has now. His current title is assistant quarterbacks coach.

With the decision now made, the attention of Penn State fans now turns to whether or not multi-year Iowa State starting quarterback Rocco Becht will follow Campbell and Waters to State College. Becht is not yet in the transfer portal. He has not yet said whether he will enter it. According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the multi-year starter for the Cyclones recently had “labrum surgery on his non-throwing shoulder.”

Becht completed 205 of 309 pass attempts (60.5 percent) in 2025 for 2,584 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also threw nine interceptions. The Florida native’s career line over four seasons in Ames, three of which he’s been the starter, is 714 of 1177 (60.7 percent) for 9,274 yards, 64 touchdowns, and 27 interceptions.

Who is currently on the 2026 Penn State football coaching staff?

Waters and Pauley both updated their Twitter bios to reflect their new roles on Tuesday night. They join a group of staffers whom Penn State already announced as official hires late last week. Here is the up-to-date list:

Taylor Mouser – Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends

Terry Smith – Associate head coach

Noah Pauley – wide receivers

Ryan Clanton – Offensive Line

Deon Broomfield – Secondary

Skip Brabenec – Football Chief of Staff

Derek Hoodjer – General Manager

Aaron Hillmann – Director of Sports Performance Operations

Reid Kagy – Head Strength and Conditioning Coach

Brandon Pietrzyk – Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach

Trent Slattenow – Director of Player Personnel

Jack Griffith – Recruiting Assistant