Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1537537
6 6 A U G U S T 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M / / / / / / / 2 0 2 5 F O O T B A L L P R E V I E W / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / PRESEASON ANALYSIS ★★★★★ National Title; ★★★★ Top 10; ★★★ Top 25; ★★ Too Unproven; ★ Major Concern STARTERS ★★★★ Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zuriah Fisher will be the starters at defensive end. A former five-star prospect, Dennis-Sutton came on strong at the end of the last season, totaling 2 sacks and an interception in the Orange Bowl against Notre Dame. Fisher is back in action after missing the entire 2024 campaign with an injury. He played in all 13 games as a red- shirt junior and looks to be a good fit in new coordinator Jim Knowles' defense. On the interior, senior Zane Durant has been a stalwart for the Lions, a third-year starter who won consensus honorable mention All- Big Ten honors last fall. However, the other defensive tackle spot is up for grabs heading into preseason camp. The Lions would love to have super senior Alonzo Ford Jr. ready to go by opening day, but the 6-foot-2, 305-pounder has had trouble staying healthy since arriving from Old Dominion in 2023 and missed spring practice while still recovering from a season- ending injury he suffered last November. If Ford isn't fully healthy by the end of August, the Lions will likely turn to a redshirt fresh- man, either Xavier Gilliam or Michigan trans- fer Owen Wafle. EXPERIENCE ★★★ Dennis-Sutton started 14 games and played 608 defensive snaps last fall, while Durant started all 16 games and was on the field for 658 snaps. Fisher was a frequent contributor as a redshirt junior in 2023, seeing action on 237 snaps. However, the defensive tackle spot opposite Durant is going to be manned by someone inexperienced at the Big Ten level. Ford has played only 11 games in two seasons at Penn State due to injuries, and the other contenders are young. DEPTH ★★★ Penn State wasn't particularly deep at de- fensive end to begin with, and then the news broke in early June that promising redshirt freshman Max Granville was out with a long- term injury he suffered while at home in Texas during the semester break. With Granville sidelined, the Lions will be even more anxious to see some of their young edge rushers step forward in preseason practice. That group includes four players with freshman eligibility in Jaylen Harvey, Mylachi Williams, Dayshaun Burnett and Yvan Kemajou, along with red- shirt sophomore Mason Robinson and red- shirt junior transfer Enai White. The defensive tackles are in a similar situa- tion, with redshirt freshmen like Gilliam and Wafle expected to play key roles and perhaps even vie for a starting spot. OVERALL GRADE ★★★ Losing Granville was a significant blow to the edge rushing corps, and it raises some important questions. Who can fill the twitchy pass-rusher role that was expected to be Gran- ville's? How does his absence change what DC Jim Knowles will do, specifically on third down? And will this change anything for the defensive tackles and linebackers? It's not the end of the world, but it is a prob- lem. Penn State was hoping that it could get creative with its players up front by moving Dennis-Sutton to the interior to rush the quar- terback beside Durant in obvious passing situa- tions. That may or may not happen now. At tackle, much will depend on whether Ford can get healthy and stay healthy. If he's able to play a full season in his final year of eligibility, the Lions should be tough in the middle. Zane Durant was an honorable mention All-Big Ten choice as a junior defensive tackle last season. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS BY THE NUMBERS 15th Dani Dennis-Sutton's spot in the 2026 mock draft issued by ESPN's Jordan Reid in early May. Reid had the Penn State edge rusher going in the middle of the first round to the Arizona Cardinals. 83.4 Zuriah Fisher's tackling grade from Pro Football Focus in 2023, his last healthy season. Fisher was tied with safety King Mack for the third-best mark on PSU's defense, trailing only safety Kevin Win- ston Jr. (92.8) and cornerback Cam Miller (85.1). 119 Tackles for loss by the Penn State defense last season, a total that ranked second nationally behind Ole Miss' 120. Defensive linemen accounted for 73 of those TFLs, and the Lions' average of 7.4 per game ranked ninth in the FBS. PERSONNEL POSITION COACH Deion Barnes: A Philadelphia native and former Penn State letterman, Barnes is enter- ing his third season as defensive line coach at his alma mater and his sixth year overall with the program after working as a graduate assistant previously. He helped develop edge rushers Abdul Carter and Chop Robinson into first-round draft picks the past two years, while Adisa Isaac went in the third round in 2024. All four starting Penn State defensive linemen — tackles Zane Durant and Dvon J-Thomas and ends Carter and Dani Dennis- Sutton — earned All-Big Ten honors last year. RETURNING SCHOLARSHIP PLAYERS Defensive Tackle LIAM ANDREWS R-Fr. | 6-4 | 291 • Did not see action for the Nittany Lions in 2024 while moving from the offensive line, where he played at the Dexter School in Brookline, Mass., to the defensive front. KALEB ARTIS R-Jr. | 6-4 | 304 • Played on only 23 defensive snaps last season and did not see action in the team's final five games, finishing the season with 4 tackles. • Appeared in all 13 games in 2023, pri- marily on the field goal unit. TY BLANDING R-So. | 6-1 | 292 • Played in six games last fall, finishing with 3 tackles, including 1 for loss against Kent State. • Saw action in only one game in 2023 and preserved his freshman eligibility. DE'ANDRE COOK R-Fr. | 6-4 | 287 • Played in one game as a true freshman, seeing action in the Lions' regular-season finale against Maryland. ZANE DURANT Sr. | 6-1 | 294 • Started all 16 games and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors in 2024 while com- piling 11 tackles for loss and 3 sacks. • Started 11 games as a sophomore in 2023, finishing with 17 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and 2 sacks.