Penn State defensive end Daniel Jennings set to enter transfer portal

Another talented underclassman from Penn State plans to enter his name into the NCAA’s transfer portal. Defensive end Daniel Jennings is the latest Nittany Lion who wants to see what other options may be available to him, BWI has confirmed. Lions247 first reported the news.

A native of Princeton, W. Va., Jennings was originally a Class of 2026 prospect. After announcing his commitment to the Nittany Lions in July 2024, Jennings realized he had the opportunity to enroll even sooner if he added a few extra classes to his schedule. Sure enough, that’s exactly what he did, allowing him to skip his senior year of football at Princeton High School and instead enroll at Penn State six months earlier than he originally planned.

“It really had nothing to do with us [pushing the idea],” said former Penn State head coach James Franklin last June. “He wanted to reclass, wanted to see if it could work from Penn State’s perspective, if we had room to make it work. He was working back at home with his high school. Part of it, I think, is he lost his high school coach. High school coach left, and basically he felt like, in some ways, he was ready.

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“I think he was the Player of the Year in West Virginia. He was the number one player as a junior in the state. So, once they wanted to do that, then it was ‘Ok, is there a way to make this work, to fulfill your responsibilities for graduation of high school from an NCAA perspective and from a Penn State perspective?’ Once we realized we could check all those boxes, we said, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’”

Following a coaching change, Jennings has since decided that Penn State may not be the right place for him. A former four-star prospect, Jennings finished ranked No. 394 in the Industry Rankings. He was the 41st-ranked edge rusher and No. 1 overall in West Virginia for his class.

Jennings earned offers from Illinois, UNLV and West Virginia at the time of his commitment. He chose the Nittany Lions over the Mountaineers. He joins the following Penn State players who plan to enter the portal when it opens Jan. 2:

DE Zuriah Fisher – He is not with the team in New York.

CB Elliot Washington II – Left the Lions and plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal. 

DE Chaz Coleman – Left the Lions and plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal. 

OG Alex Birchmeier – Left the Lions and plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal. 

TE Joey Schlaffer – Left the Lions in October with plans to enter the portal.

CB AJ Harris – Left the Lions and plans to enter the transfer portal.

WR Aaron Enterline

LB Kari Jackson