Penn State football has one of its most complete rosters on and off the field it’s had in the 12 years James Franklin has been at the helm. From two elite coordinators in Andy Kotelnicki and Jim Knowles, to the seventh most returning starters, 14, in the country, the Nittany Lions are poised for a big year.

With that being said, two areas of the field still have question marks that will need to be answered before the season opener against Nevada on August 30. One of those areas is the linebacker room.

The loss of Kobe King to the Vikings in the 2025 NFL Draft, and his potential replacement, Ta’Mere Robinson, to USC in the transfer portal, means a complete overhaul of the position heading into the 2025 season.

For a while, it seemed Franklin was looking within to fix his problems. After all, the Nittany Lions had Anthony Speca, Kari Jackson, and Keon Wylie all with at least a year under their belts to complement Tony Rojas and Dom DeLuca, who played large roles last season.

“They’re all stepping up. They’re all trying to make a name for themselves. Keon is hungry. I know Speca is hungry. I know Kari is hungry,” linebacker and team captain DeLuca said in April. “They’re bringing the standard up in the room.”

It wasn’t until a slight injury to Tony Rojas before the spring game that it became obvious Penn State had a depth problem at linebacker.

“I think we have enough in the [linebacker] room, but to get through an entire season, if we get some injuries, it could get challenging,” Franklin said after the Blue-White Game.

In not-so-Franklin fashion, the head coach of the Nittany Lions also acknowledged the transfer portal as a legit option for his squad, even using the post-game press conference to say a quick recruiting pitch.

“So if there is a linebacker out there that wants to come and be a part of our program and play for the LBU, the most historic linebacker program in the history of college football, there’s an opportunity here to join the room and compete,” Franklin said.

A few days later, Penn State found its depth and even potential stardom in former UNC linebacker Amare Campbell. The Virginia native joined the Nittany Lions with two years of eligibility remaining after recording 90 tackles, 7.5 sacks, an interception, and a forced fumble across two seasons with the Tar Heels.

“He’s a vet, he’s done it at a high level, and he comes in here and he’s humble, he’s still hungry,” Penn State linebacker coach Dan Conner told statecollege.com. “He doesn’t have any hot-shot arrogant mentality. I mean, he’s a worker, and that fits here.”

Besides fitting the culture, Campbell also fills a spot that the Nittany Lions needed. Simply put, Penn State had a mike problem. After the loss of King and Robinson, there wasn’t a clear option for who would fill the role of quarterback of the defense.

This is especially important as the defense adapts to the new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ defensive schemes. The Philadelphia native uses his linebackers as more cover guys compared to Manny Diaz and Tom Allen, who liked their backers getting after the quarterback or playing man coverage inside.

Fortunately for Penn State, Campbell has passed his first offseason in Happy Valley with flying colors.

“He tested well this summer, he’s explosive, he’s fast, he’s powerful, he’s kind of compact,” Franklin said. “You guys will see him. He’s not one of those 6’3″, 6’4″ guys like some of those guys we’ve had in the past, but he can cover ground, and he has really good instincts. You can tell he’s played a lot of football, and that’s going to be valuable to us.”

The hardest part of playing the mike linebacker role, though, doesn’t have to do with physical traits, but rather the mind. Typically, the mike wears the green dot, meaning they are the only player on the field with communication to the coach and are responsible for setting up the defense every snap. Something Campbell believes he can do.

“I feel like I can control the defense well. I could help the d-line set up. Just being vocal,” Campbell said. “I’m used to that, I was doing that previously at my other school.”

Something that will help the new face on defense is the experience of playing under Franklin that DeLuca and Rojas both have. DeLuca, a redshirt senior, and Rojas, a junior, have both shared their strong connection to Campbell already. In fact, Rojas was the one who originally helped recruit the fellow Virginia native out of the portal.

Rojas, though, isn’t just there to teach others. The linebacker, who noted Knowles has a higher standard for him than past coaches, is set to have his best year with the Nittany Lions after playing through injury in 2024.

“Tony really played most of last year with an injury, an injury that he could play with but an injury that affected him; he was not 100 percent,” Franklin said. “Being able to have an off-season surgery and get him right, he is strong, he is fast, he is confident.”

Fast is the right word. Rojas posted earlier this summer on Instagram flexing his whopping 4.37 unofficial 40-yard dash time. A 4.37 would have Rojas as the fastest linebacker in every NFL combine since 2020, with only two other players reaching the 4.39 mark, one of them being Micah Parsons.

Coming off a season where the linebacker posted 58 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, three interceptions, and four pass breakups, a fully healthy Rojas is a scary thought.

On top of the big three, Penn State could lean on its youth throughout the season if injuries do happen. Players like LaVar Arrington II and Speca have impressed during the spring and at the start of summer camp.

Arrington is just a true freshman, but he’s already been touted by his teammates as the most athletic linebacker outside of Rojas. While he would need players to go down before he gets his chance, the linebacker has done nothing but improve since arriving on campus in January and getting the iconic No. 11 jersey.

Speca, on the other hand, will get his opportunities. While injuries and no Campbell helped, the Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, native was the star of the show in the spring game, playing for both teams and making plays. The redshirt freshman has also taken a leadership role in the linebacker room, despite his age.

“In high school, especially, I think I took on a big leadership role. And you get to college, and you’re kind of a younger guy, so you kind of sit back and play your role,” Speca said after the Blue-White Game. “But now we’ve lost two guys in the LB room, I knew it was my time to step up, just for the team and for the room.”