Penn State Sports Magazine
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P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> 2 0 1 9 S E A S O N P R E V I E W KEY PERSONNEL Nick Bowers, Pat Freiermuth*, Jonathan Holland, Zack Kuntz, Brenton Strange LOSSES Joe Arcangelo, Danny Dalton RISING STAR It will be interesting to see how the coaching sta> uses Strange this fall. A January enrollee, the 6-foot- 3, 222-pound true freshman reportedly impressed in spring practice. He looked good in the Blue- White Game, too, catching a team-high three passes for 19 yards for the White squad in his =rst public appearance in Beaver Stadium. The Lions have a bit of depth here, with Bowers and Holland back and Kuntz coming o> a redshirt year. But Strange is an intriguing prospect. He's already up 8 pounds from his listed weight last December, and he has outstanding hands, as evidenced by the 2,822 receiving yards he amassed during his varsity career at Parkersburg (W.Va.) High. BIGGEST LOSS The Lions said goodbye to Dalton in January when the former three-star prospect from Marsh=eld, Mass., transferred to Boston College. Dalton redshirted in 2016 and didn't see action the following season. He made his debut in Penn State's season opener against Appalachian State last year and went on to play in three games, catching three passes for 19 yards. NUMBERS GAME Freiermuth led the Nittany Lions with eight touchdown re- ceptions last season. Those eight TD catches were the second-most by a tight end in the Football Bowl Subdivision and were the most by a Penn State freshman since wide receiver Deon Butler =nished with nine scores in 2005. OUTLOOK The Nittany Lions appear to be in much better shape here than they were at this time a year ago. Following Mike Gesicki's graduation, they didn't have any experienced tight ends on their roster heading into the 2018 season and desperately needed someone to step for- ward. Someone did. A?er backing up Hol- land in Penn State's =rst four games, Freiermuth broke into the starting lineup against Ohio State and never re- linquished the =rst-team position, =n- ishing as the Nittany Lions' second-leading receiver with 26 catches for 368 yards. The 6-5, 262-pounder was especially e>ective in the red zone, as evidenced by his penchant for making touchdown catches. James Franklin noted several times last season that "the stage wasn't too big for him," and his numbers against Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State – nine catches, 127 yards, one touchdown – bear out that assessment. In Penn State's biggest games, the true freshman came to play. So what's next? Gesicki showed what kind of numbers a good pass-catching tight end can put up in Penn State's of- fense, totaling 105 receptions for 1,242 yards during his junior and senior sea- sons. Freiermuth has Gesicki's sure hands, and he's also carrying nearly 10 more pounds than his predecessor did, which means that the Lions can use him as a conventional blocking tight end as well as a downfield receiving threat. With three years of eligibility remaining, Freiermuth has the poten- tial to develop into one of the better tight ends that Penn State has ever produced. As for depth, Bowers has played spar- ingly throughout his career due to in- juries, but he's coming o> a junior season in which he saw action in nine games, =nishing with career highs for receptions (six) and receiving yards (50). He should be an e>ective backup, and he provides the kind of depth that will come in especially handy if the Lions opt to use more two-tight end sets than in the past. Like Bowers, Holland is also a =?h-year senior, but he didn't play much at the end of last year and didn't get on the =eld in the Blue-White Game. His role with the team coming out of spring practice was unclear. Kuntz gives the Lions a di>erent kind of threat at 6- 7, 236 pounds, and Strange could also play his way onto the =eld as a fresh- man. In short, the Lions have a lot of op- tions here. –M.H. * Starting experience in 2018 TIGHT END NO NAME HT WT YEAR 87 Pat Freiermuth 6-5 262 So./So. 83 Nick Bowers 6-4 265 Sr./Sr. 82 Zack Kuntz 6-7 236 So./Fr. 86 Brenton Strange 6-3 222 Fr./Fr. SPOTLIGHT TIGHT ENDS P H I L ' S T A K E What a di>erence a year makes. The tight end position was the No. 1 con- cern on Penn State's o>ense going into the 2018 season. This fall, however, Pat Freiermuth and Nick Bowers could give the Nittany Lions the No. 1 pair of tight ends in the Big Ten. Freiermuth was named a Freshman All-American by several media outlets and =nished the 2018 season as Penn State's second- leading receiver with 26 catches for 368 yards. His eight touchdown catches were the second-most in the country by a tight end, trailing only Jace Stern- berger of Texas A&M, who =nished with 10 TDs. Quality depth comes from Zack Kuntz, who is 6-foot-7, 236 pounds, and January enrollee Brenton Strange. Jonathan Holland's role was unknown as of this writing, but even so, it's entirely possible that Penn State will enjoy the best depth it's had at the tight end position in the six years in which James Franklin has been the team's head coach. ■ OR FREIERMUTH