6’5” – 252 lbs.
Redshirted, then caught six passes over eleven appearances the following year before stepping into a starting role as a sophomore, a year in which he went 18-320-5 (17.8). Followed that up with 24-377-2 (15.7) as a junior and 26-405-6 (15.6) as a senior. Has a solid combination of size and bulk for a pro tight end prospect, and, like many of the other top prospects in this year’s class, takes snaps as an H-Back, as an inline tight end, and split out, in roughly that order of frequency. Predominantly had a blocking role with the team. Gives good effort in that capacity, with pretty impressive short-area quickness to line up defenders. Able to climb to the second level or come in motion and deliver crack blacks on backside pursuers. Can chip one defender and climb to engage another. Looks good lining up opponents from the slot in the screen game. Chippy player who can generate a little bit of pop; however, contact strength/balance are not really what you’d expect for a player with his size. Can be knocked around or fall off of blocks, particularly because he can sometimes lapse into throwing his body at opponents instead of using form technique. Ability to sustain blocks is somewhat lacking as well. Does flash the ability to get his arms extended, but lacks the balance and grip strength to stick with his man through the whistle; tends to lower his head and lunge. Also retained in pass protection relatively often and does a pretty good job of bending at the knees and getting extension. Route tree is your typical assortment of flares, hitches, shorter routes, and seam patterns. Overall athleticism is decent but tends to rely on window-dressing at the route stem instead of sinking his hips and exploding; would like to see him keep his arms higher and get lower into the route stem. Could do a better job of shielding defenders from the ball. Looks like a pretty reliable target when he’s able to work underneath the defense, catching the ball away from his frame with soft hands; look reasonably flexible to adjust to throws. However, may be more of a safety valve at the next level than someone who’s going to win against man coverage. A pretty textbook example of a “jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none” type of prospect, he offers solid size, reasonable athleticism, soft hands, and good effort as a blocker, but isn’t really one of the best players in the class in any area. More of a mid-rounder.
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