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Penn State DT Zane Durant accepts 2026 Senior Bowl invite

Mug-Shot 4x4by: Ryan Snyder7 hours agoRyanSnyderOn3

Penn State senior defensive tackle Zane Durant announced on Monday that he’ll be opting out of the Pinstripe Bowl. Now, on Tuesday, it’s become clear that Durant plans to participate in a different postseason game, accepting an invite to this year’s Senior Bowl.

Durant had a solid career with the Nittany Lions. After playing as a true freshman in 2022, Durant became a three-year starter for defensive line coach Deion Barnes, finishing with 89 total tackles, 22 tackles for loss, 10 total sacks and an interception.

“I want to thank Penn State University for the memories and experiences that it has given me. I would like to thank Coach Deion [Barnes], Coach Manny [Diaz], Coach [Anthony Poindexter], Coach [John] Scott, Coach [Tom] Allen and Coach Terry [Smith]. For the past four years, I want to thank everyone that I got the chance to work with while attending Penn State.

“I also want to thank the Lord because without him, this wouldn’t be possible. Thank you momma and pops for everything y’all instilled in me. I want to thank Coach [James] Franklin for giving me the opportunity to attend Penn State and for being a mentor and example to me. With that being said, I will be opting out of playing in the bowl and will be declaring for the 2026 NFL Draft.”

Earlier today, Smith was asked about Durant’s decision to skip Penn State’s final game of the 2025 season and instead focus on his future at bowl media day.

“He chose to move on at this point,” Smith said on Tuesday morning. “We’re super happy and we’re super proud of him. At this point, he’s the only one that has opted out. We’re just looking forward to putting our best team forward and trying to get ready for this Clemson team that creates all kind of challenges for us.”

Coming out of Lake Nona High School in Orlando, Fla., Durant was a four-star prospect in the Industry Rankings, coming in at No. 307 nationally. The 2022 prospect was part of one of the best classes Franklin and his staff ever assembled during their time in State College, joining multiple five-star prospects like Dani Dennis-Sutton, Nick Singleton and Drew Allar.

So far, Durant is the only Penn State player to confirm that he won’t participate in the showdown against Clemson on Dec. 27. However, he’s not expected to be the last.