Penn State’s Dani Dennis-Sutton starting to thrive under DL coach Deion Barnes

Dani Dennis-Sutton thought he played only three or four snaps in last year’s opener at Purdue. Turns out, it was nine reps at defensive end, according to Pro Football Focus, though it might have felt like only a few.

Dennis-Sutton was a five-star freshman. He was the highest-rated recruit in Penn State’s 2022 class, higher than Nick Singleton and Drew Allar. And yet, he went into his freshman season not having a firm grasp on how much he’d be involved.

“This time last year, I didn’t really know what my role was going to be,” Dennis-Sutton said candidly Wednesday. “I prefer to know.”

This time around, Dennis-Sutton received that information in an open conversation with new defensive line coach Deion Barnes. Before last Saturday’s opener against West Virginia, Barnes sat down with Dennis-Sutton to discuss his role.

“Deion told me that throughout camp, throughout spring ball, I was pretty consistent every day, you know, doing my job and being able to make plays,” Dennis-Sutton said. “He was telling me to keep those things up throughout the season, and you’ll get the reps that you want and make the plays that you want. It was great hearing that.

“He’s straight up with us. He tells us what it’s going to be. He told me to be ready because this game I’m going to be playing a lot and throughout the season. He said I’ve earned the snaps I’m playing.”

The result? Dennis-Sutton played 42 snaps against West Virginia, third most among defensive linemen and behind only Chop Robinson (45) in the pass rush rotation. The sophomore didn’t start, but he did outrep Adisa Isaac, who played 27 snaps.

Dennis-Sutton is ready to break out. He’s comfortable within Manny Diaz’s defense. He’s bigger, faster, stronger. His technique is better, and he’s more confident.

Part of that confidence stems from Dennis-Sutton’s natural ability. There’s a reason Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State wanted the 6-foot-5, 261-pounder as a recruit. But part of that, too, stems from the rapport he’s built with Barnes.

Dennis-Sutton was named a True Freshman All-American by ESPN last year. He appeared in all 13 games, chipping in 17 tackles, three sacks and an interception. The Delaware native flashed potential but didn’t totally settle into his game.

That’s changed since Barnes replaced John Scott Jr. as Penn State’s defensive line coach. Dennis-Sutton has taken a liking to Barnes’ honest approach. He feels it’s helped him noticeably improve his game over the last few months.

“He was a great hire,” Dennis-Sutton said. “He’s direct. He’s honest. He’s not going to sugarcoat anything. It’s easier to know what you’re doing wrong when a coach isn’t sugarcoating it and telling you what it is. … If it was a brand new coach that none of us knew and he came in with a whole new standard that players didn’t respect as much, I think it would’ve been tougher. But everybody respects Deion.”

Dennis-Sutton wasn’t pleased with how the pass rush played against West Virginia. Isaac and Robinson recorded a tackle for loss each. But the defensive ends recorded only six quarterback pressures, per PFF. Comparatively, Penn State’s edge rushers accounted for 17 pressures in the Rose Bowl win over Utah.

Dennis-Sutton said the defensive ends hustled and played hard, but the end product was “sloppy” against West Virginia. He believes that will get corrected.

Look no further than Delaware visiting this weekend as a chance for Dennis-Sutton to tee off before the start of Big Ten play and prove Barnes’ faith in him is well-placed.