Penn State snapshot profile: No. 28 Zane Durant

Kevin McGuire
·2 min read

Going into the 2022 football season, Nittany Lions Wire will be looking at each scholarship player listed on the Penn State roster.

Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for James Franklin this season.

Penn State is welcoming a stellar Class of 2022 haul to the program this year, and a handful of key players from the recruiting class got a chance to enroll early and get started with the program in the spring. Among them was defensive lineman Zane Durant, who emerged as one of the most impressive rookies for the Nittany Lions. But how does he fit into the 2022 picture for the fall?

Here’s a snapshot look at one of Penn State’s future defensive stars in the making.

Preseason Player Profile

Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

Hometown: Lake Nona, Florida

Ht: 6′-1″

Wt: 265 lb

247Sports Composite Ranking

Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports

[4 stars] | [No. 35 in Florida] | [No. 38 overall among defensive linemen]

Class in 2021: High school senior

Career Stats

Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Zane Durant has yet to appear in an official Penn State game. According to MaxPreps, Durant had 84 career solo tackles (169 total tackles), with an average of 4.6 tackles per game. Durant was credited with 24.5 career sacks for Lake Nona High school in Florida, and he caused six fumbles with four fumble recoveries.

As a senior in 2021, Durant had 66 total tackles in 10 games, with 28.0 TFL and 15.0 sacks. Durant also had six rushing attempts resulting in four rushing touchdowns for Lake Nona.

Depth Chart Overview

Sep 25, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions defensive tackle PJ Mustipher (97) reacts following a sack. Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports

Zane Durant was among the most impressive rookies in the spring for Penn State. The early enrollee took advantage of the opportunity to get to work with the defensive line and he displayed why there is so much optimism for his future in the trenches. But it may take just a little more time before Durant locks down a starting role on the line.

[autotag]PJ Mustipher[/autotag] (pictured, above) and [autotag]Coziah Izzard[/autotag] are the likely starters in the middle of the line at the defensive tackle positions for the upcoming 2022 season, and [autotag]Jodan van den Berg[/autotag] and [autotag]Dvon Ellies[/autotag] are more experienced backup options that could step in if needed before new defensive coordinator Manny Diaz turns to Durant in any significant role. But Durant will certainly be among the names to watch in the middle of the line should Penn State run into any issues at the tackle posiiton.

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