The 2025 season is coming to a close, folks.

Penn State football’s 2025 season will go down as one of the wildest rollercoaster rides anyone could experience. The Nittany Lions started the season ranked as the No. 2 team in the nation, lost a key top-5 game to Oregon in the White Out, then went on to lose two more games to massive underdogs in UCLA and Northwestern.

After the Northwestern defeat, starting quarterback Drew Allar was pronounced to have suffered a season-ending injury. The next day, James Franklin was fired, bringing his 12-year tenure to a close. The Nittany Lions would go on to lose at Iowa, at top-ranked Ohio State, and then No. 2 Indiana in a heartbreaker at Beaver Stadium.

Now, Penn State is finally back to its winning ways, beating Michigan State and Nebraska in back-to-back weeks, keeping its bowl eligibility alive.

“We knew it was a matter of time, and we just needed to play our game at the end of the day, and those hard conversations helped us,” linebacker Dom DeLuca said postgame. “I mean, you really saw the true colors of everyone. When you’re down like that and back against the wall, you just have to really come out and trust in everyone, trust the process and everything.”

The fifth-year senior has been the definition of what the Penn State football brand tries to represent. DeLuca was a walk-on out of high school, earned significant snaps as a linebacker, and became a centerpiece to the program’s group of captains.

After starting linebacker Tony Rojas suffered a season-ending injury in practice after the Oregon game, DeLuca was trusted and counted on to fill the position next to star transfer portal addition Amare Campbell. Against the Cornhuskers, DeLuca led the team in tackles with 10, just two short of his career best of 12 set in the UCLA game earlier this season.

“It was awesome. It was unbelievable. I tried to take it all in before I left,” DeLuca said. “I love Penn State, love everyone, love my teammates.

“I don’t want to leave. I want to stay here the rest of my life, but I mean, onto bigger and better things. I’m just happy I get to celebrate with the boys,” DeLuca said.

Defensive tackle Zane Durant was also emotional following the conclusion of Saturday’s contest. Despite the rollercoaster season, the Nittany Lion said he would remember everything about it, not just the newfound enjoyable moments.

“Everything is a lasting memory. Everything is a lesson. I’ll never forget what happened and why it happened and stuff of that nature, but also the good times, I’ll remember that as well. I feel like this year is much needed for me in my development as a man and a player,” Durant said postgame.

Durant has been more of a difference than his tackle numbers show for the Penn State defense. The Nittany Lion was listed as one of the vocal leaders during the most chaotic times of the season by his peers.

The defensive tackle has still been serviceable in 2025, securing 23 tackles and three sacks with an interception and a pass breakup. Against the Cornhuskers, Durant was dominant at the line of scrimmage, tallying two tackles, a sack, a tackle for loss, and a pass breakup.

Despite the ups and downs, Durant is proud of the way his team is finishing the season. He noted that his fellow seniors have grown considerably throughout their time with the program.

“It’s amazing. We go out the right way, all the guys that came in with me, grew from kids to boys to men, it’s really exciting to see, it’s a blessing to have this experience with the guys I came in with,” Durant said.

Although his team won’t be going to the College Football Playoffs or even be ranked within the top 25, Durant had a simple answer on possible second thoughts about returning for his final year of eligibility.

“I don’t have any regrets.”