Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1524108
6 0 A U G U S T 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M / / / / / / / 2 0 2 4 F O O T B A L L P R E V I E W / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / P enn State lost two impact edge rushers in Chop Robinson and Adisa Isaac to the NFL this past April, but if there's one position at which the program has proven it can quickly reload, it's defensive end. Over the past five years, the Nittany Lions have had five edge rushers se- lected in the first three rounds of the draft. That doesn't include Micah Par- sons, who played linebacker in college but is now arguably the best defensive end in the NFL. Throw him into the mix, and three of Penn State's past five first- round picks have been edge rushers. If all goes to plan, that trend is going to continue in 2024. During a sopho- more season in which he earned third- team All-Big Ten honors despite making only three starts, Dani Dennis-Sutton showed that he has what it takes to be a top NFL selection. Abdul Carter displayed pro potential, too, albeit at linebacker. Now, follow- ing the staff's decision to move Carter to defensive end for his third and likely final season at the college level, the Nittany Lions may very well end up producing two more pass rushers who are selected in the early rounds of next year's NFL Draft. "Dani has just gotten better every single year, every single spring," head coach James Franklin said in April. "He's 270 pounds. He's physical, extremely physical. I think he's going to have a re- ally big year for us. He just understands how to play the position. He's played a ton of football for us already. We need him to take a step this year, and from everything we've seen so far, I think he will." While his only starts last year were against Indiana, Maryland and Ole Miss, it was Dennis-Sutton, not Isaac or Rob- inson, who led the edge-rushing corps in total snaps with 445. That was partly due to Robinson missing a few games with an injury, but it also speaks to the trust that Penn State has in the Mills- boro, Del., native. Listed at 6-foot-5, 272 pounds, Den- nis-Sutton finished fourth on the team in both tackles for loss (6) and sacks (3.5) in 2023. Considering that he was RELOADING ZONE PSU turns to Dani Dennis-Sutton and Abdul Carter to keep the heat on opposing passers RYA N S N Y D E R | RYA N . S N Y D E R @ O N 3 . C O M Dennis-Sutton started only three games as a sophomore but still had 6 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, earning third- team All-Big Ten notice. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL