Penn State among elite group with multiple preseason All-Americans

Penn State football returns a veteran-laden roster that is poised to be among the nation’s best in 2025. This week, a trio of Nittany Lions is now earning recognition as the first wave of preseason honors begins to be released.

Defensive tackle Zane Durant, offensive lineman Vega Ioane, and running back Nicholas Singleton were named to the Walter Camp preseason All-America teams on Tuesday. Durant and Singleton earned first-team honors while Ioane was selected to the second team. The Walter Camp is the oldest All-America team in the nation.

The Nittany Lions were one of five programs to have three players on the preseason All-America list, joining Alabama, Clemson, Indiana, and Texas. Ohio State and Notre Dame each have a pair of All-Americans.

Coming off his second 1,000-yard season in the Blue and White, Singleton is widely viewed as one of the top running backs in college football. He leads all returning FBS players with 2,912 rushing yards, 32 rushing touchdowns, and 4,673 all-purpose yards over his three-year career. The senior rusher was tabbed for the first team alongside Notre Dame star back  Jeremiyah Love.

Durant returns for a fourth year in Happy Valley, looking to be a veteran anchor for a defensive front that lost Abdul Carter and Dvon J-Thomas from the 2024 roster. Named a Big Ten honorable mention in each of the last two years, Durant was second among defensive tackles in the conference last fall with 11 tackles for loss.

Across the line of scrimmage, Ioane is set to help lead the way for a dynamic Nittany Lions offensive attack. With Ioane starting all 16 games last fall, the Penn State offense led the nation in first downs and ranked in the top 20 in passing efficiency, fourth-down conversion percentage, completion percentage, rushing, and third-down conversion percentage.

With the season opener now in 60 days, Penn State is roughly a month away from the start of fall camp. On Monday, we learned that Drew Allar, Nick Dawkins, and Zakee Wheatley will represent the program at Big Ten Media Days later in July, one of the next significant milestones before football returns to Happy Valley.

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