Here’s How Penn State QB Rocco Becht Thinks He Can Do Better

EVANSTON, Ill. — Rocco Becht is a smart guy. He’s a wise old head in college football terms. This is his fifth season playing and mostly starting Power 4 football. He’ll turn 23 in a month. He’s started 44 games as a college QB1. And won 29 and lost 15 — the losses, while some of them ugly (see: Northwestern, 2026), can be learning tools as well.

His dad, Anthony, played in the NFL for 11 seasons and is 30-10 as a head coach in the XFL and the UFL. The Bechts know football.

And yeah, he whiffed when I asked him about what class(es) he’s taking this fall. But he’s clearly a smart young man with an undergrad comm degree from Iowa State and was a 4.0 student in PSU summer grad classes, who is now taking an online class this fall. (Not sure what it is.) This is not news: South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers is taking an internship this fall at a local driving range. Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart finished his USC degree by taking ballroom dancing in his final semester with his girlfriend at the time.

So, he gets it. His job this fall is playing QB at PSU. Obviously.

The flip side is: He makes a lot of money. A lot. Numerous outlets have reported that he’s making more than $1 million a year in rev-share money from Penn State.

He also has or had endorsement deals with EA Sports, T-Mobile, Rhoback, Dr Pepper, KFC, Onvo and CVS, and a line of clothing at theroccobecht.com. Fans driving to Beaver Stadium from Harrisburg see him on a big billboard by the Duncannon Sheetz, endorsing a personal injury firm.

So, he’s making bank.

He gets that he gets the money because he make plays, is a winner, is charismatic and helps move products. At Penn State, the product is football tickets. That’s a tough sell right now, and Becht’s performance the past two weeks is not good for business.

After the game, Becht said, “I’ll put my trust in God.” So, the quarterback certainly knows Luke 12:48, which says: “To whom much is given, much will be required.”

Again, he gets it. That’s why he went all in on Friday night after Penn State’s embarrassing 34-13 loss to Northwestern, while doing a quick Q&A with about eight Penn State media who made the trip. The session was inside a teeny-tiny media workroom tucked away deep in brand-new Ryan Field. As Becht spoke, a PSU PR person and Jake Waters, Becht’s quarterback coach the past three seasons — two at Iowa State, one at Penn State – stood off to the side.

The seminal question of the session was this, I think: “In what ways do you have to get better?”

Becht’s answer came quickly, thoughtfully (though he didn’t share what I think is the full to-do list of Rocco DIY). He knows what he needs to work on — immediately, as the Nittany Lions prepare for USC in a Beaver Stadium White Out next Saturday. And over the next 56 days, between now and Penn State’s final regular-season game against Maryland (speaking of messes) in College Park on Nov. 28. His post-grad career — he and his pop still gotta be thinking NFL — depends on it.

ROCCO’S LAUNDRY LIST. Here is Becht’s reply: “I think for me, it’s…

“Leadership.

“Getting the first first down. Trying to get better in that area.

“Making the play when there’s nothing there.

“Using my feet, scrambling more.

“And continuing to get out of bad situations.

“I think, for me, making the play last longer.

“Getting into my last read and stepping up in the pocket and get out of the pocket a little bit and use my legs.”