Ikenna Ezeogu Remains Confident in Penn State’s Pass Rush

Through the opening third of the season, Penn State’s pass rush has struggled to produce consistent pressure, leading to questions surrounding a unit that entered the season with high expectations.

Despite the lack of backfield finishes being viewed as a team weakness, starting defensive end Ikenna Ezeogu remains steady in his belief that the Nittany Lions are on the verge of breaking through. While sack totals have remained sparse, with just six this season, Ezeogu sees a front line that’s constantly disrupting opposing backfield and edging closer to finishing plays.

“I think that we’re growing each and every week is what I’m seeing,” Ezeogu said. “So I feel like at the end of the day, we just got to keep going and just not see any decrease in our pass rush. So we just got to keep going. We’re gonna get to the quarterback eventually, so I definitely believe that we just got to keep finding ways to get better each and every week.”

Penn State has occasionally flushed quarterbacks out of the pocket and disrupted passing rhythms, even if the final hit isn’t landed.

“As I watched the film last last week, I felt like we got to the quarterback a lot, and then the week before with Buffalo, Yvan Kemajou was getting to the quarterback a lot, so we’re still affecting them,” Ezeogu said. “We’re still getting them to get out the pocket, but we just got to finish on them, and that’s the main goal.”

But against mobile quarterbacks, that typically hasn’t been enough to slow them or derail the offense. Converting near-misses into tackles for loss requires sharpening details, including more explosive get-offs and quicker execution on pass-rush moves.

Ezeogu also pointed to the symbiotic relationship between the secondary and the defensive line, with coverage breakdowns potentially leading to quick passes that don’t allow time for the defensive line to get home.

“We’re gonna get it done this week, though,” Ezeogu said.

How they finish will be tested Friday against Northwestern and another mobile quarterback in Aidan Chiles. Penn State has encountered mobile signal-callers earlier in the year with mixed success, including Temple’s Jaxon Smolik and Wisconsin’s Colton Joseph.

Ezeogu drew a lofty comparison when evaluating Chiles’ skillset, noting that keeping him contained will prove paramount on Friday.

“(Chiles is) a good quarterback,” Exeogu said. “I see like a little Lamar Jackson on him, but you know, just got to just make sure to contain him. We can’t break down when we get to him because he’s definitely an elusive guy, definitely quick, can evade tackles very well. So that’s definitely something I’ll be studying this week and making sure that when I do get to him, that I can get him down.”

The Nittany Lions do carry one potential advantage ahead of the matchup thanks to edge rushers coach Christian Smith, who spent the last three seasons on the Wildcats’ staff. Smith’s insight into Northwestern’s offensive tendencies could translate into success in the pass rush.

“(Smith has) been staying late, coming in early, doing his job, and then teaching us more things that he’s learned from Northwestern and just putting that into us and allowing us to go out there and play fast on Friday,” Ezeogu said.

Penn State will also continue to lean on versatility across its front. While the team doesn’t employ many stunts during games, they do show different personnel groupings, including the NASCAR package with four defensive ends on third-and-long situations.

They’ve also shifted Ezeogu to the inside presnap to have him rush the interior and try to create more favorable matchups. Moving around the formation has been an essential tool for the redshirt senior.

“I enjoy it a lot, just because the game that I have, and the game that the defensive line has,” Ezeogu said. “There’s a lot of guys who can rush inside and out, and with the matchups that we get, it’s been looking pretty good. So it definitely helps us a lot, especially the level that we want to get to, obviously. It just shows the versatility that each player has.”