Who are Penn State’s top-10 defensive ends of the last 25 years? How our panel voted
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Penn State football: The best players since 2000
For summer 2025, we’re looking back on the past quarter century of Penn State football and Nittany Lions. We formed a panel of voters to determine the best players at each position since the 2000 season, along with the top 10 offensive and defensive players overall.
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Our summer series ranking the best Penn State football players of the last 25 years continues on with a position that’s seen a bit of a resurgence of late — defensive end.
As a reminder, we had 10 Penn State beat writers form a panel of voters to determine the best Nittany Lions at each position since the 2000 season, along with the top 10 offensive and defensive players overall, based on their stats, accomplishments and the eye test.
That panel is made up of Neil Rudel (Altoona Mirror), Rich Scarcella (Reading Eagle), Audrey Snyder (The Nittany Dispatch), Mark Brennan (Lions247), Mark Wogenrich (Penn State on SI), Frank Bodani (York Daily Record), Daniel Gallen (Lions247), Johnny McGonigal (PennLive), Josh Moyer (Centre Daily Times) and Jon Sauber (Centre Daily Times).
And at the end of each week, you’ll have a chance to vote on each position in a poll at the bottom of the story and have your say on the best Nittany Lions since 2000. Results will be shared at the end of the series later this summer.
We’ve already covered quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, offensive linemen, tight ends, safeties, cornerbacks, linebackers and defensive tackles. So let’s move on to the 10 best defensive ends since 2000.
Note: First-place votes are in parentheses for players with a high rank of one.
10. Dani Dennis-Sutton
High rank: 6 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 9.7
Years played: 2022-present
In the popular John Wick action films, the main character is referred to early on as “Baba Yaga” because he’s an unstoppable assassin — a boogeyman — who fears nothing and never slows down. Dennis-Sutton’s nickname? Baba Yaga. The returning defensive end has been called a psycho (in a good way), as his high-level motor complements his prototypical size in a way that coaches dream of. At 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds, Dennis-Sutton’s run defense and effective bull-rush has helped push the Nittany Lions to one of the nation’s top defenses. He was a freshman All-American (ESPN.com) before earning back-to-back spots on the All-Big Ten team — a third-teamer in 2023 and an honorable mention in 2024. He already boasts 22.5 career tackles-for-loss, 15 sacks and four forced fumbles. He was a projected first- or second-rounder in 2025, but he still decided to return to Penn State. Prediction: He’ll be moving up these “Best of ...” lists after this coming season.
9. Maurice Evans
High rank: 4 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 9.4
Years played: 2006-2008
The Brooklyn native is known for developing into an explosive and disruptive defensive end, one of the nation’s best — before suffering a down season and leaving Happy Valley early to a lot of unfulfilled potential. Evans had a solid rookie campaign, earning a spot on The Sporting News’ All-Big Ten Freshman Team, before his sophomore season put him on the map. That season alone, he had 12.5 sacks (5th-most in school history), 21.5 tackles-for-loss (6th-most in school history) and five forced fumbles (t-3rd-most in school history). Statistically, it was one of the greatest-ever seasons for a Penn State defensive lineman. And Evans was rewarded with a spot on the All-Big Ten first team and was also a finalist for the Ted Hendricks Award, which annually goes to the nation’s top DE. But, with sky-high expectations his junior year, he faltered after an offseason incident (marijuana-related) that led to a three-game suspension. His role was diminished — he ended the year with five tackles-for-loss and three sacks — and he declared early for the NFL, where he went undrafted. It wasn’t an ideal end but, no matter what way you look at it, Evans still put forth one of PSU’s best and strongest defensive seasons of the 21st century.
8. Arnold Ebiketie
High rank: 6 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 8.9
Years played: 2021
Ebiketie may have played just one season at Penn State after spending four at Temple, but our panel valued quality over quantity — and the transfer’s final collegiate season was a special one. The impactful senior leader was a positive force off the field and, on the field, his quick first step and 4.66 speed translated into a lot of frustrated quarterbacks. He finished the 2021 season with 62 tackles, 9.5 sacks, two blocked kicks and a Big Ten-best 18 tackles-for-loss. He was named a second-team All-American and was a finalist for the national Ted Hendricks Award. He was one of the most successful transfer additions in Nittany Lion history, and he went on to be taken early in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
7. Yetur Gross-Matos
High rank: 5 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 7.3
Years played: 2017-2019
After a true freshman season that saw Gross-Matos play in every game, he quickly developed into one of the best defensive ends in the Big Ten. His quick first step, combined with the ability to rush the passer from the edge or the interior, led to back-to-back spots on the All-Big Ten first team. Coaches said he practiced like he played in games — always at full speed — and that intensity defined his performances. He is 12th on Penn State’s list of career sack leaders (19) and 12th in career tackles-for-loss (37). He had the ability to change the face of a game, and he was a consistent and reliable force for two seasons. He declared early for the NFL draft, where he was taken in the second round.
6. Chop Robinson
High rank: 3 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 6.4
Years played: 2022-2023
Double-teams were basically mandatory when it came to passing-downs against Robinson — otherwise the quarterback was just asking to get strip-sacked. The Maryland transfer, who spent two seasons with the Nittany Lions, would beat opposing linemen before they could even set their blocks. He didn’t rack up sacks, but his elite disruptive ability went beyond the stat sheet: He hurried throws, broke protection schemes and forced QBs to scramble. In 2023, when he had just four sacks and eight tackles-for-loss over 10 games, Pro Football Focus still ranked him as one of the nation’s five- or six-best edge rushers. (He had a 17.6% pressure rate and missed tackles at only a 7.1% clip, two elite numbers.) That season, he was a third-team All-American and a first-team All-Big Ten selection before becoming a first-round NFL draft pick. Robinson helped make the PSU defense elite, even if his numbers themselves weren’t elite.
5. Aaron Maybin
High rank: 4 | Low rank: 8 | Average rank: 5.9
Years played: 2006-2008
Maybin’s Penn State timeline is a bit unusual: Redshirt season then a year as a backup and then ... one of the top-10 individual season performances by a Penn State defender. (And, no, no one really saw that coming.) He created consistent pressure that season with a lightning-quick first step and top-end speed that saw him hit a 4.59 at his eventual Penn State Pro Day. His meteoric rise culminated in 2008 with 12 sacks and 20 tackles-for-loss, which both still independently rank among the top-10 marks in school history. He was a first-team All-American, a finalist for the Bednarik and Hendricks awards, and he was named National Defensive Player of the Year by the Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C. He declared early for the NFL draft, was selected No. 11 overall — and then promptly became a bust. One wonders how Maybin’s future might be different if he stayed in Happy Valley for another season but, whatever the answer, the Baltimore native was one of the best defenders in the nation for a year. He earned his spot here.
4. Carl Nassib
High rank: 3 | Low rank: 10 | Average rank: 4.5
Years played: 2013-2015
Forget Notre Dame’s “Rudy”; that famous underdog story is full of so many half-truths and exaggerations that even Irish alum Joe Montana publicly disputed it. Nassib’s true story is even wilder. The NFL alum — and current PSU board of trustee — came on to Penn State as a walk-on who didn’t even start a game in high school. But he devoted himself to the weight room and, after having zero career starts heading into his redshirt senior season, he put on a performance for the ages. The rangy 6-foot-6 defender played low and used his 270-pound frame to punish offensive linemen, recording a school-record 15.5 sacks and earning first-team All-America honors. Then-DC Bob Shoop said before the season Nassib was capable of making the All-Big Ten team, but the assistant never would’ve guessed he’d win the Hendricks Award and Lombardi Award, in addition to being named the Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. Nassib was an underdog like no other. He may have spent more time with the scout team over his career than with the starters, but his final season was arguably the best in Penn State history. “This wasn’t something God-given,” his high school coach once said. “This is something he worked for.”
3. Michael Haynes
High rank: 1 (1) | Low rank: 4 | Average rank: 2.8
Years played (after 1999): 2000-2002
Haynes was just fine as a sophomore and solid as a junior, as he tied for the team lead in sacks in 2000 (6) and boasted the lead in 2001 (4). But something clicked for Joe Paterno’s favorite “knucklehead” — the coach used the word while teasing him over his untapped potential — and, come Haynes’ senior season, he used his natural athleticism to reach a whole other level. The late-bloomer was quick and persistent off the edge, and he finished his final season with 15 sacks, 23 tackles-for-loss and seven forced fumbles. It was a record-breaking season. At the time, Haynes’ sack mark tied the school record (since broken by Nassib). His forced fumbles remain a single-season school record, and he ranks third on the PSU list for most TFLs in a season. He was a first-team All-American, the 2002 Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the national Ted Hendricks Award. He is tied for third in the program lead for career sacks (25.5) and ranks sixth in tackles-for-loss (42). He was a first-round NFL draft pick.
2. Abdul Carter
High rank: 1 (4) | Low rank: 3 | Average rank: 1.9
Years played: 2022-2024
We could point out all Carter’s explosive plays, his elite athleticism and stunningly quick get-off — but let’s try another tack. The three-time All-Big Ten selection had the ability to impact the entire field, and maybe nowhere was that more evident than during a simple screen pass against Purdue. (James Franklin said it was his favorite defensive play that game.) During that third-and-long play, Carter started on the right edge and then immediately adjusted after a quick screen-pass to the receiver on the other side of the field. Carter turned up and chased the wideout down less than 2 seconds after the catch. “Holy cow!” the CBS broadcaster exclaimed. “Watch that explosiveness. ... Holy man, that is scary.” That was the Abdul Carter watching experience in a nutshell: A typical play made in non-typical fashion, one that’s easy to miss but gets more impressive each time you see it. Carter was one of the best defensive players in the nation, as evidenced by his 2024 stat line: 12 sacks, 24.5 tackles-for-loss, 68 tackles, 9 QB hurries. He was named a first-team All-American and the Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, in addition to being a finalist for just about every major defensive award — Bednarik, Nagurski and Lombardi. Carter sits among the top 10 of Penn State’s all-time leaders in career sacks (23) and TFLs (39.5), and he was taken No. 3 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. He is the odds-on favorite to become the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.
1. Tamba Hali
High rank: 1 (5) | Low rank: 4 | Average rank: 1.7
Years played: 2002-2005
On Sept. 23, 2003, Joe Paterno said the following about Tamba Hali at his press conference: “One of these days he will be a dominant football player, but he isn’t there yet.” Paterno didn’t need to wait much longer. Hali could shake off double teams and zero in on the ball-carrier or, as he matured, he could use his violent hands and explosive first step to sack the quarterback. He was the total package, a talented player and team leader who helped guide the 2005 team to an Orange Bowl. He always stepped up when the moment called for it, like forcing a fumble against Ohio State in 2005 in the waning minutes for a historic upset. He collected 50 tackles in three straight seasons, became a two-time all-conference selection and reached total “dominance” by his senior season. In 2005 he had 17 tackles-for-loss, 11 sacks, 65 stops — and became the Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year while achieving first-team All-America status. He was a finalist for the Nagurski and Hendricks, in addition to being a first-round NFL draft pick. His stats may not appear as impressive as others on this list but, for those who watched him play, it felt like Hali willed his defense to make big plays and crucial stops. He came from war-torn Liberia, helped turn around the program after back-to-back losing seasons — and did exactly what Paterno predicted. He dominated.
This story was originally published July 16, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
