Penn State's defense suffered a significant setback early in the 2025 college football offseason. After losing former stars Abdul Carter, Kevin Winston Jr. and Jaylen Reed to the NFL Draft, the Nittany Lions suffered another major blow with Max Granville picking up a significant injury.
Granville, a redshirt freshman, suffered a serious injury in practice that was “unspecified” but expected to be “long-term,” according to On3 Sports. Speculation suggests the injury will be season-ending, but nothing has been confirmed.
Though Granville played sparingly through seven games in 2024, he was expected to take a major leap in his second season. The former four-star recruit recorded just one tackle and one quarterback hurry as a true freshman. However, with Carter gone, many viewed Granville as a top candidate to take his place opposite Dani Dennis-Sutton.
Before going down, most of Granville's hype came from the belief head coach James Franklin had in him. Franklin said the coaching staff went “back and forth” when contemplating whether they wanted to burn his redshirt in 2024.
“He was a guy that flashed as a true freshman,” Franklin said, via On3 Sports. “We went back and forth on whether we were going to burn his redshirt or not. He's gotten bigger and stronger. He's put on really good weight. It's really important to him. He works extremely hard at it.”
How Max Granville's injury affects Penn State in 2025
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Jan 9, 2025; Miami, FL, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin before the game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium.
Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Now expected to miss most of the upcoming year, Granville will likely use another redshirt on the 2025 season. His injury renders Penn State's defensive line fairly thin. Zuriah Fisher, Jaylen Harvey and Mylachi Williams will be forced to step up in his absence.
Ahead of the 2025 college football season, many viewed Penn State as a top contender in the Big 10. Despite losing several key defensive pieces, the 2024 runner-ups return quarterback Drew Allar and running back Kaytron Allen. However, with Granville going down, their defense is now immensely questionable.
Led by Carter, Penn State's pass rush ranked among the best in the nation. The Nittany Lions racked up 44 sacks in 2024, sixth-most in the FBS and second in the Big 10. Without the same level of depth in 2025, that strength is now arguably a weakness of Franklin's team.
a]:text-link [&_>a]:underline">Jaren Kawada is a NFL, College Football and Betting Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. Kawada was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, after graduating from Butler University with a B.A. in sports media.