Alonzo Ford Jr. is a former Penn State defensive tackle and is not on the team’s 2026 roster.
Penn State Status
Ford declared for the 2026 NFL Draft after the 2025 season. That makes his page a career and draft-process profile, not a 2026 depth-chart entry.
Ford arrived at Penn State from Old Dominion, missed the 2023 season because of injury, then became part of the defensive tackle rotation in 2024 and 2025. Public stat sources differ slightly on tackle totals; reliable public data does not establish his precise snap rates, double-team percentages, or efficiency metrics.
Verified Production
Onward State reported that Ford played in all 12 regular-season games in 2025 and recorded 15 tackles, 0.5 sacks, a pass breakup, and an interception. ESPN’s public player page lists him with 18 total tackles in 2025 and one interception. StateCollege.com’s draft profile summarized his Penn State career as 34 tackles, three quarterback pressures, and an interception across his two active seasons.
The conservative takeaway is that Ford was a rotational interior defender whose value came more from size, strength, and run-defense work than box-score production.
Draft Process
StateCollege.com’s April 2026 draft profile covered Ford as a professional prospect before the draft and did not support a first-round or high-certainty selection claim. Onward State’s declaration coverage confirms the key status change: Ford left the Penn State roster path and entered the draft process.
At this point in the public record, Ford had declared for the draft and was no longer part of Penn State’s 2026 roster picture. A later team signing or rookie-camp invitation would be a separate NFL development.
2026 Depth-Chart Impact
Because Ford is gone, Penn State’s 2026 defensive tackle room should be evaluated around returning players and transfer additions such as Siale Taupaki, Keanu Williams, Dallas Vakalahi, Alijah Carnell, De’Andre Cook, Liam Andrews, and Ty Blanding.
That distinction matters. Listing Ford as a returning anchor would make the 2026 defensive front look more stable than it is. The more accurate read is that Penn State had to replace major interior snaps after losing Ford, Zane Durant, and other defensive line contributors.
Current Takeaway
Ford’s Penn State production and draft declaration explain the interior-line vacancy created by his exit. He is not a current Penn State depth-chart option.
For current Penn State coverage, Ford’s profile is useful because it explains why the interior defensive line could not simply be copied from the 2025 roster. He was not a high-volume box-score player, but he was part of the rotation, and losing rotational size matters when a staff is also replacing Zane Durant and reshaping the front under a new defensive structure.
Ford was one part of the defensive tackle rotation, not the sole player who defined it.
Sources
This profile was checked against Onward State’s January 2026 draft declaration report, StateCollege.com’s April 2026 Ford draft profile, ESPN’s Ford player page, and Onward State’s January 2026 roster reset article.