Penn State DE Shaka Toney declares for the NFL Draft, forgoing an extra season
Penn State redshirt senior defensive end Shaka Toney has declared for the 2021 NFL Draft, he announced via Twitter on Monday night.
“Growing up in Philadelphia, it was always a dream to play college football,” Toney said in the statement. “It has been a dream come true to have been able to play at a prestigious university like Penn State.”
He made the decision after discussions with his family, coaches and teammates, he wrote.
The 6-foot-3, 252-pound Philadelphia native started in all nine games this season for the Nittany Lions. He finished the 2020 season with 31 total tackles, 7.5 tackles for a loss, five sacks, one pass defended and one forced fumble.
Toney was named first-team All-Big Ten by the media, the conference’s coaches and the Associated Press.
For his career, Toney had 115 total tackles, 29.5 tackles for a loss, 19.5 sacks, four passes defended, four forced fumbles and one fumble recovered. His 19.5 career sacks are good for 10th all-time in school history.
The loss of Toney — who could’ve returned to Penn State for another year, taking advantage of the NCAA’s blanket eligibility waiver — marks a third starting defensive lineman announcing that he won’t be back next season for the Nittany Lions. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Antonio Shelton entered the transfer portal on Wednesday, and redshirt sophomore defensive end Jayson Oweh also declared for the NFL Draft on Saturday.
Redshirt senior defensive end Shane Simmons was a reserve who started in Penn State’s final two games — against Michigan State and Illinois — and played well. But he announced last week that he won’t be returning for an extra season either.
Penn State will now have to turn to sophomore defensive end Adisa Isaac and redshirt junior defensive tackle Fred Hansard, along with other less experienced players for production on the defensive line next season.
