UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Dani Dennis-Sutton could have easily moved on to the NFL alongside his teammate and fellow defensive end Abdul Carter last season
Dennis-Sutton ended 2024 with 13 tackles-for-loss and 8.5 sacks.
Instead, he, like many other Penn State players, came back for one more season in Happy Valley looking to prove something.
“I came back to prove a point,” Dennis-Sutton said after Penn State’s season-opening win over Nevada. “I try not get too involved in the stats and things like that, because you can get up and down on those. Sometimes you have a great game and not have any stats. Again, you have a bad game, and you’re having a fumble with two sacks so but yeah, obviously I want to have the whole package, get to the quarterback as much as possible.”
The senior defensive end did just that against the Wolfpack, Nevada quarterback Chubba Purdy’s life hectic. Dennis-Sutton had a sack, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, a quarterback hurry and two forced fumbles.
You have to go back to 2019 and Micah Parsons to find the last Penn State player to force two fumbles in the same game. Dennis-Sutton is in great territory, but for him, it’s all about fulfilling a promise he made to himself back in high school.
“I came in, made a promise to myself that by the time I leave college, I’ll be the best defensive lineman in the country,” Dennis-Sutton said. “I’m just trying to prove that every day to myself and to everybody else.”
His performance Saturday certainly helps his cause even with it being against Nevada, but his belief is also a byproduct of a defensive line room predicated on pursuing greatness every day.
“Just upholding the standard every day, Coach Deion (Barnes) has almost every single day in practice,” Dennis-Sutton said. “I’m running to the ball and I’m having fun as well. Not putting too much pressure on anything, just having fun.”
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.What’s fun for Dennis-Sutton might not be fun for opposing quarterbacks, but it is fun for his teammates who get to see it every day on the practice field.
“It was crazy to see,” linebacker Amare Campbell said. “You always see it in practice, but to see it in real life, in real time, it was crazy to see just all the dogs out there, everybody having great players around.”
Dennis-Sutton is far from the only stud up front for the Nittany Lions, but they all benefit from his ability to get up the field and wreak havoc against the opponent.
“It opens everything up, because Dani brings press off the edge, which ultimately allows the inside guys to get free, and also brings energy for the whole D line,” defensive tackle Zane Durant said.
The performance of Dennis-Sutton and even Durant who had his first career interception to go with a half tackle for loss.
“We worked hard this year, this all last year,” Durant said. “Everybody knows that, so we kind of put it all out there this off season. It’s just a product of what we did this summer.”
Dani Dennis-Sutton continuously plays with a lot of effort, energy and has a high motor which bodes well for his continued success along the defensive front for James Franklin’s team.
“When you play with that type of effort, good things happen,” Franklin said. “He is hungry, he is motivated, he is driven. He wants to be great. A lot of guys say they want to be great. This guy eats, sleeps and dreams, you know, football, and wants to be special. And he’s been that way since we recruited him, and since he’s been on campus, he just continues to get better. I think that the 10 pounds that he’s lost, I think, is helpful for him. I think it’s going to contribute to him having a big time year for us.”
