Previewing the 2026 season for Penn State DL Keanu Williams

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Penn State football will have a completely overhauled roster to get to know in 2026 under new head coach Matt Campbell. Following one of the most active offseasons in recent memory for Penn State with a flurry of activity in the transfer portal, fans will have a lot of catching up to do in getting to know this year’s Penn State roster. Fortunately, not every face will be brand new to fans. Regardless, we will be here to give you a fresh overview of every player on the roster for the 2026 season with a series of player profiles.

From all of the returning players, a long list of new faces from the transfer portal, and incoming recruits from the Class of 2026, we will have you covered with this year’s player profiles for the Penn State roster. Here is a quick look at defensive tackle Keanu Williams for the 2026 season.

Preseason Player Profile

  • Hometown: Clovis, California
  • Height: 6-5
  • Weight: 317
  • Class in 2026: Redshirt Senior

Recruiting Rankings

Class of 2021: Composite 4-star recruit, No. 40 defensive lineman per 247Sports

Keanu Williams was originally a four-star player out of California who signed with the Oregon Ducks. Penn State was not one of the schools originally on the offer sheet for Williams during his initial recruiting process, but he did hold Big Ten offers from Illinois, Michigan, and Nebraska at the time (as well as soon-to-be-future Big Ten members UCLA, USC, and Washington).

Williams spent two seasons with Oregon before transferring to UCLA in 2023. He entered the transfer portal once more in December 2025 and committed to Penn State in January 2026.

Career Stats

Keanu Williams played in just two games in his first two seasons with Oregon before getting an opportunity for more playing time at UCLA in 2023. Williams recorded stats in six games for the Bruins in 2023 with 14 tackles and a sack in seven games played. He is coming off a 2025 season with starts in 11 of 12 games played and recorded 39 tackles and 1.5 sacks. His 2024 season was cut short early due to injury just two games into the season.

Last year, in an upset victory by UCLA over Penn State, Williams recorded three tackles.

Depth Chart Overview

Keanu Williams is expected to be a starter for the Penn State defensive line under new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn and defensive line coach Ikaika Malloe, who was most recently UCLA’s defensive coordinator. The defensive tackle position is a bit deeper than most on the roster, so some rotations could be utilized with options like Armstrong Nnodim and Siale Taupaki available.

Random Fact

Keanu Williams’ father, Reggie Williams, was a former running back at Iowa.

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This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Previewing the 2026 season for Penn State DL Keanu Williams

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