Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Nittany Sports Now

Penn State Football: Defensive Trio Highlights Preseason Big Ten Team

Zane Durant is one of Penn State football’s Freaks
Photo by Matt Lynch, Nittany Sports Now

Penn State defensive tackle Zane Durant, EDGE Dani Dennis-Sutton and cornerback A.J. Harris continue to receive recognition as all three were named to PFF College’s Preseason All-Big Ten defensive team.

Penn State led the way with three selections.  Ohio State and Indiana also had multiple picks (linebacker Sonny Styles and defensive back Caleb Downs for Ohio State; EDGE Mikail Kamara and cornerback D’Angelo Ponds for Indiana).

Durant, who’s regarded as one of the nation’s best interior defensive lineman, was selected by Big Ten unanimously as an honorable mention to the all conference team.

During Durant’s 2024 campaign he led all interior defensive linemen with 14 tackles for loss or no gain and his 28 pressures ranked in the top 25 nationally. 

Dennis-Sutton looks to continue the elite EDGE play Penn State has become accustomed to that started with Chop Robinson and continued to Abdul Carter. 

Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.

Dennis-Sutton’s tied for the most valuable returning Power 4 EDGE rusher per PFF College and has the second most quarterback pressures of any defender nationally with 75.

Against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff at the Orange Bowl, Dennis-Sutton had a breakout game with his second multi-sack performance which featured a forced fumble, had an interception, and had six tackles. 

Harris was voted by the coaches and media to the All Big Ten third selection last season.

Harris finished with 48 tackles (28 solo), four tackles for loss, one interception and five pass breakups. In PFF’s wins above average metric, Harris finished in the Top 10 most valuable cornerbacks in the nation while only allowing 0.76 yards per coverage snap

Penn State opens its 2025 season against Nevada on August 30 at  3:30 PM in Beaver Stadium.

Get NSN in your Inbox

Enter your email address to get notifications of new posts by email.

More from Nittany Sports Now

Penn State Football Recruiting

0s Penn State held its first major early-summer recruiting weekend under Matt Campbell, and the timing could not have been much better for the...

Penn State Football

0s We have a little under 100 days until Penn State opens its 2026 season. Is it too early to predict how things are...

Penn State Hockey

0s Pierce Mbuyi’s path to Penn State started before the NCAA door fully opened for Canadian Hockey League players. The Owen Sound Attack forward...

Penn State Football Recruiting

0s Penn State’s first major official visit weekend of the summer has already produced another commitment. Caleb Cooper, a three-star safety from Providence Day...