Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1531683
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 5 3 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Mylachi Williams | DE | R-Fr. A former four-star prospect, Williams did not see game action in his first year with the Nittany Lions. NEWCOMERS Randy Adirika | DL | Fr. Adirika finished with 22 tackles for loss and 6 sacks as a senior at Miami (Fla.) Central. The 6-foot-3, 285-pound pros- pect is On3's No. 46 defensive lineman in the 2025 class. Dayshaun Burnett | DE | Fr. Burnett had 75 tackles including 11.5 sacks as a senior at Imani Christian in Pittsburgh. The 6-3, 220-pounder re- ceived a three-star grade from On3 and was listed as the No. 51 edge rusher na- tionally. Chaz Coleman | DE | Fr. The 6-4, 220-pound Coleman made a big jump in the recruiting rankings as a senior at Warren G. Harding High in Ohio, earning a fourth star and finishing as the No. 191 overall prospect and No. 19 defensive end in On3's rankings. Cortez Harris | DE | Fr. The 6-3, 205-pound Harris played in only four games as a senior at Riverdale Baptist in Upper Marlboro, Md., but still had 7.5 sacks. A three-star prospect, he's the nation's No. 49 edge rusher, per On3. Yvan Kemajou | DL | Fr. Kemajou was On3's No. 40 defen- sive end nationally but is expected to move inside at Penn State. The 6-3, 235-pounder from Burtonsville, Md., had 63 tackles as a senior at Paint Branch High, including 13 for loss and 5 sacks. Owen Wafle | DT | R-Fr. The 6-2, 298-pound Wafle spent one season at Michigan before entering the transfer portal. The former three- star prospect from the Hun School in Princeton, N.J., didn't see action for the Wolverines during the 2024 season. He was listed by On3 as the No. 87 defensive lineman and No. 950 player in the trans- fer portal. Enai White | DE | R-Jr. White will help bolster Penn State's pass rush after transferring from Texas A&M. He had been On3's No. 7 edge rusher nationally and No. 2 player in Pennsylvania coming out of Imhotep Charter in Philadelphia in 2022. While with the Aggies, he was hindered by a knee injury and played only 9 snaps dur- ing the 2024 season. He was listed by On3 as the No. 68 edge rusher in the por- tal this offseason. 2025 Outlook Penn State ranked ninth in the FBS in run defense in 2024, allowing only 101.9 yards per game. The Lions' defensive front clamped down hard on opposing runners, allowing only two players — USC's Woody Marks and Boise State's Ashton Jeanty — to surpass 100 yards. Considering that Jeanty, the Heisman Trophy runner-up, only managed 104 yards on 30 car- ries after going into the Fiesta Bowl averaging 192.1 yards per game, that performance has to go down as one of Penn State's best. The Nittany Lions were also very effective at pressuring opposing quarterbacks, thanks largely to consensus All-American Abdul Carter, who had 12 sacks in his first and only season at defensive end. Now, position coach Deion Barnes' unit must do some rebuilding. Carter is about to hear his name called early in the NFL Draft, while defensive tackles Dvon J-Thomas and Coziah Iz- zard are also gone. Between them, those three players totaled 34.5 tackles for loss last year. That's a lot of productivity to replace, but the situation could have been a lot worse. The Nittany Lions might also have lost Durant and Dennis-Sutton, who have NFL futures of their own to consider and who could have left Penn State with four vacancies on its starting defen- sive front if they'd opted to leave early. The two honorable mention All-Big Ten play- ers opted to come back in 2025, giving Penn State a huge boost. Dennis-Sutton in particular looks like he's poised for a big year. He ended his junior campaign on a very promising note, compiling a season-best 88.1 overall defensive grade from Pro Football Focus in the Lions' loss to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. To help fill the vacancies, Penn State signed White and Wafle out of the portal. White was an elite prospect coming out of Imhotep Char- ter in 2022. If he's healthy, he could be another edge-rushing transfer success story, joining current NFL players Arnold Ebiketie and Chop Robinson. The middle of Penn State's defensive line looks a little thin, even with Wafle coming aboard. What the Lions could really use here is a healthy season from Ford. His PFF run de- fense grade of 77.2 was the team's best among defensive linemen with 100 or more snaps, but he's been available for only 11 of 29 games since transferring from Old Dominion. — Matt Herb Defensive tackle Zane Durant earned an honorable mention All-Big Ten nod after totaling 11 tackles for loss and 3 sacks as a junior. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS 2025 LOOK AHEAD