Why Penn State's Coaching Staff Can't Stop Talking About Max Granville

STATE COLLEGE | Penn State defensive end Max Granville could’ve had a breakout year in 2025, but his sophomore campaign was over before it began. He sustained a lower-body injury that spring, causing him to miss the season.

Granville has since completed rehab for that injury and is set to be back in action this season. He’s in a position group where he projects to see a sizable role and has left a positive impression on Reid Kagy, the Nittany Lions’ new director of football strength and conditioning.

“I've been super impressed with his work ethic,” Kagy said at the Lift For Life fundraising event on July 1. “Coming back from injury is hard. You can get caught in a lot of space, you can get lost in the whole process of it. Sometimes you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Granville sustained the injury during a workout at his home in Texas, which he described as a “wrong surface, wrong cleat type of thing.” Then-head coach James Franklin said his heart broke for Granville, mentioning Penn State was depending on him “taking that next step” in 2025 with a role alongside starters Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zuriah Fisher. In fact, 2025 should have been his freshman season at Penn State.

Granville reclassified into the 2024 class to join the Nittany Lions a year early, so instead of being a senior at Fort Bend Christian Academy, Granville made seven appearances as a freshman that season. He even saw time during Penn State’s College Football Playoff run, particularly during the Fiesta Bowl after Abdul Carter was injured.

While Granville couldn’t build on that last season, he still stood out to head coach Matt Campbell and the rest of the staff when they arrived in Happy Valley.

“Max is somebody we were super excited about when we stepped in here,” Kagy said. “I know Max was coming back from injury as well when we first got here, and [this is] the biggest thing about Max: Max is super humble, and Max goes to work.”

Penn State DE Max Granville is huge https://t.co/vSyLBGJFQX pic.twitter.com/AmqkmLMN75
— LandonTengwall (@LandonTengwall) June 27, 2026

Granville said he opted to return to the team because he loves Penn State and didn’t want the Pinstripe Bowl against Clemson last season to be his final game with the program. He added that he wanted to continue building his career with the Nittany Lions.

“It really just had me thinking, man, like I love Penn State and I don’t want this to be my last game,” Granville said during spring practice in April. “I want to keep building something here. I came here out of high school. It would be awesome to finish it out.”

The 6-3, 252-pound defensive end was limited during spring practices due to what he called a “minor back issue,” which was unrelated to his season-ending injury last year. Granville anticipates he’ll be ready for fall camp.

“This new staff is really, really good about recovery and rehab,” Granville said. “And so when I’ve been running and everything, I feel great. I feel athletic, I feel fast. I put on some more muscle, so there’s no real trust issues. If I’m going to make a plant, I feel great.”

Heading into the 2026 season, Penn State will rely on Granville to help replace Dennis-Sutton and Fisher, as the two starting defensive end roles are up in the air. Granville will compete with redshirt senior Ikenna Ezeogu, sophomore Alexander McPherson and sophomore Yvan Kemajou for those spots on the defensive line.

If Granville earns a starting spot, Penn State could end up seeing the breakout year from Granville that it originally expected a year ago.

“We're really excited about what Max can do,” Kagy said. “I know he's super excited to get back onto the football field and make an impact. [He’s] another guy that we've been super impressed with from a work-ethic standpoint, and a guy that continues to impact this team. We're excited for what he's gonna do this fall.”

Penn State defensive end Max Granville talks with reporters during a media availability in State College. | Mark Wogenrich/Penn State on SI

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