The status of two injured Penn State linemen for Saturday’s home game against Ohio State probably won’t be decided until that morning, coach James Franklin said Monday.
Defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton sustained what appeared to be a groin injury in the second quarter of the Nittany Lions’ 28-13 win at Wisconsin. He was on the field for the first snap of the third quarter and then took himself out.
Franklin said Dennis-Sutton’s status is similar to that of quarterback Drew Allar, who suffered a left knee injury against the Badgers.
“Dani has played a ton of football,” Franklin said. “He’s super mature. He’s very intelligent. He’s thoughtful. He’s hard-working. He’s been in the training room the last two days. Every time I’ve gone down there, he’s there.
“We’ll go right up to game time to see where we’re at with things. If he’s able to go, he’ll go. If he’s not, we have a ton of confidence in other guys as well.”
Dennis-Sutton, a junior, has been a disruptive force, compiling four tackles for loss, two sacks, a team-high four quarterback hurries, three pass breakups, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
He was named to the All-Big Ten third team by the conference coaches last year.
Seniors Amin Vanover and Smith Vilbert filled in nicely for Dennis-Sutton at Wisconsin, Vilbert making a tackle in the backfield. They were high school teammates at St. Joseph’s Regional High School in Montvale, N.J.
“I felt very confident coming into this season that Smith and Amin were going to have big years,” Franklin said. “I still believe that. I think both of those guys are going to play football for a long time.”
Offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh also is questionable for the Ohio State game. Donkoh, a sophomore, has been the starter at right tackle. He suffered an injury to his right arm or shoulder last month against Illinois and left the Wisconsin game in the first quarter.
He was replaced by Nolan Rucci, the former Warwick standout who transferred from Wisconsin earlier this year. Rucci saw his most extensive minutes at Penn State and finished the game.
“Guys have to figure out what you can play with and what you can’t play with,” Franklin said. “I think Donkoh is working through that right now. He’s a great kid. He’s a smart kid. He and Rucci were in the training room.
“We expect to play both of those guys, but it’s too early to say.”
National attention: For the first time, Penn State will host FOX Big Noon Kickoff and ESPN College GameDay on the same weekend.
Both network shows will air before the third-ranked Nittany Lions meet No. 4 Ohio State Saturday at noon (TV-FOX) at Beaver Stadium.
College GameDay will air from 9 to 11:30 a.m. from Gate C of the Bryce Jordan Center before moving inside Beaver Stadium until noon. It will be the 11th time that the show will be live from Penn State and the first time since the 2021 Auburn game.
It’s the 13th time GameDay will air from the site of a Penn State-Ohio State game, the most in the program’s history.
Big Noon Kickoff will air from 10 to 11:30 a.m. from Gate B of the BJC before moving to the Gate B concourse at Beaver Stadium until kickoff. It’s the fourth time the show has been at Penn State.
