UNIVERSITY PARK — The end of spring practice on Saturday was also the first time Matt Campbell walked in West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium with fans in the stands.

In a perfect world, the weather would have been much better for Saturday’s Blue-White Practice, a 22-18 win for the Blue in a modified scoring system.

There may have been 10,000 fans in the bleachers at the beginning, and the crowd dwindled later in the 90-minute practice.

It was the end of a lot of work since Campbell arrived in State College in December and for those who followed him in the coming weeks from Iowa State and elsewhere. A total of 24 former Iowa State players transferred to Penn State, which retained about 30 from its 2025 roster.

A new offense and defense, different terminologies, new teammates and coaches, and for many the new surroundings are just a glimpse of what the last four months have been like. Campbell seemed satisfied with the meshed transition.

“The last 16-17 weeks, there has been a lot of change,” he said afterward. “To have the ability to really come together, feel like we had the ability to get a base offense and base defense, really understand what we are, and evaluate our football team — those are things we feel very confident about ourselves in.”

Fans brave weather

To say the elements were unkind for fans and players alike would be an understatement. It rained throughout the practice with temperatures barely climbing into the 50s.

A few of the hardy fans got seats as close as possible to the action, but the majority sat under the upper deck overhangs in both of the north and south end zones.

It was appreciated by both coaches and players for fans to show up at the culmination of spring ball.

“I didn’t expect all these people to show out with the rain coming down, so that was pretty cool,” quarterback Rocco Becht said. “That just shows what type of fan base these people are.”

“To see this crowd and the amount of people that came out to support our football program in a downpour today, I just think (it’s important) every opportunity to show our young men in our program how special it is to play here at Penn State and what it means,” Campbell said. “I couldn’t have asked for better circumstances. You have to have precision about yourself, especially in this kind of weather. It was great to see our guys execute out there.”

The west side of the stadium was closed to the public for the ongoing construction project.

What about football?

If fans had questions on the quality of the team going into Saturday, there probably weren’t many answers provided to them.

Most of the practice was spent in position drills and 7-on-7 passing matchups, but there were also live scrimmage periods.

The wet weather caused some issues with drops and throwing accuracy, but it was probably a little cleaner than expected in the steady rain.

Two of the more eye-opening plays came on the defensive side with cornerbacks Daryus Dixson and Josiah Zayas getting interceptions. Dixson picked off possible third-string QB Connor Barry, and Zayas batted a pass from freshman Peyton Falzone, picked it off and took it back for an easy pick-6.

Becht, the presumed starting quarterback, was only limited to 7-on-7 skeleton drills as he recovers from offseason surgery to his left (non-throwing) shoulder. Alex Manske, who was Becht’s backup at Iowa State last season, was also lost for spring ball with an undisclosed injury.

Stats were not kept for the practice.

NFL Draft picks

One of the bigger highlights that drew the most applause from the crowd was the news of former Nittany Lions being drafted.

While the practice was in front of everyone, on two separate occasions the Penn State scoreboard crew played the popular NFL Draft chime. The public address announcer relayed the news that former Lions’ Drew Shelton and Dani-Dennis Sutton were picked in the fourth round.

Shelton, an offensive tackle, was picked by the Dallas Cowboys. Sutton, an edge rusher, was taken just eight picks later by the Green Bay Packers.

After the practice, safety Zakee Wheatley (fifth round, Carolina Panthers), running back Nicholas Singleton (fifth round, Tennessee Titans), defensive tackle Zane Durant (fifth round, Buffalo Bills), and running back Kaytron Allen (sixth round, Washington Commanders) were all taken.

Several more signed contracts as undrafted free agents at the conclusion of the NFL Draft.