Safety, Penn State, 2021–25
Zakee Wheatley
- Number
- No. 6
- Height
- 6′2″
- Weight
- 200 lb
- Class (2025)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Crofton, MD
- Born
- Feb 28, 2002
Wikipedia readers: about 1,036 a month over the past year
Zakee Wheatley played safety at Penn State (2021–25). The Carolina Panthers took Wheatley in round 5, No. 151 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
At a glance
Career highs
16tackles, career highvs. Notre Dame, 2024Defense
| Season | Team | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD | Hur |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Penn State | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Penn State | 24 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 2023 | Penn State | 24 | 14 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | Penn State | 86 | 53 | 2.5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | Penn State | 74 | 51 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Career | 210 | 139 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 3 | |
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls. A dash: the source has no number for that season (often an FCS season), and career totals count only the numbers on file.
On the roster
| Season | Team | No. | Pos | Class | Ht | Wt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Penn State | 6 | S | Yr 1 | ||
| 2022 | Penn State | 6 | S | Yr 2 | ||
| 2023 | Penn State | 6 | S | Yr 3 | ||
| 2024 | Penn State | 6 | S | Yr 4 | ||
| 2025 | Penn State | 6 | S | Sr. (Yr 5) | 6′2″ | 200 |
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Game by game
2025 Penn State 12 games, 74 tackles, 1 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30 | vs. Nevada | W 46–11 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 6 | vs. Florida International | W 34–0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 13 | vs. Villanova | W 52–6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 27 | vs. Oregon | L 24–30 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 4 | at UCLA | L 37–42 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 11 | vs. Northwestern | L 21–22 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 18 | at Iowa | L 24–25 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov 1 | at Ohio State | L 14–38 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 8 | vs. Indiana | L 24–27 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 15 | at Michigan State | W 28–10 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 22 | vs. Nebraska | W 37–10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 29 | at Rutgers | W 40–36 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2024 Penn State 15 games, 86 tackles, 1 sack, 3 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | at West Virginia | W 34–12 | 4 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 7 | vs. Bowling Green | W 34–27 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Sep 21 | vs. Kent State | W 56–0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 28 | vs. Illinois | W 21–7 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 5 | vs.UCLA | W 27–11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 12 | at USC | W 33–30 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 26 | at Wisconsin | W 28–13 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 2 | vs.Ohio State | L 13–20 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 9 | vs. Washington | W 35–6 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 16 | at Purdue | W 49–10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 23 | at Minnesota | W 26–25 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 30 | vs. Maryland | W 44–7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 21 ✦ | vs. SMU | W 38–10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dec 31 ✦ | vs. Boise State | W 31–14 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jan 9 ✦ | vs. Notre Dame | L 24–27 | 16 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
2023 Penn State 9 games, 24 tackles
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | vs.West Virginia | W 38–15 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 16 | atIllinois | W 30–13 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 23 | vs.Iowa | W 31–0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 30 | atNorthwestern | W 41–13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 14 | vs. Massachusetts | W 63–0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 21 | atOhio State | L 12–20 | 3 | 1 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 4 | atMaryland | W 51–15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 11 | vs. Michigan | L 15–24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 30 ✦ | vs. Ole Miss | L 25–38 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 Penn State 12 games, 24 tackles, 2 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1 | atPurdue | W 35–31 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 10 | vs. Ohio | W 46–10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 17 | at Auburn | W 41–12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 24 | vs. Central Michigan | W 33–14 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 1 | vs.Northwestern | W 17–7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 15 | atMichigan | L 17–41 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 22 | vs.Minnesota | W 45–17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 29 | vs.Ohio State | L 31–44 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 5 | atIndiana | W 45–14 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 12 | vs.Maryland | W 30–0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 19 | atRutgers | W 55–10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 26 | vs.Michigan State | W 35–16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2021 Penn State 2 games, 2 tackles
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
Before the draft
Played in the 2026 Senior Bowl (National team, lost 9–17).
| Drill | Combine 2026 | Combine or pro day 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Height | 6′3⅛″ | |
| Weight | 203 lb | |
| Arm length | 31″ | |
| Hand size | 9½″ | |
| Wingspan | 76⅜″ | |
| 40-yard dash | 4.62 s | |
| 10-yard split | 1.64 sW | |
| Vertical jump | 32½″ | |
| Broad jump | 10′2″ | |
| 3-cone drill | 6.89 s | |
| 20-yard shuttle | 4.11 s |
Combine or pro day: the source doesn’t say which. Unmarked: Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data); W: Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Rosters and honors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL
1 season, 3 games with a stat; latest team: Carolina Panthers.
| Season | Team | G | Tkl | Sacks | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | Carolina Panthers | 3 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.
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