Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1201503
NFL in 2018 as a second-round draft choice of the Miami Dolphins, Gesicki flourished this past year. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel called him "one of the lone bright spots this season" after more than doubling his offensive statis- tics from his rookie year. Dan Natale 1972-74 6-3 | 220 | Glassport, Pa. Dan who? Natale is probably the most overlooked of all the top tight ends in Penn State history. His superb blocking for Heisman Trophy winner John Cap- pelletti in 1973 helped make him a sec- ond- team All-American. He still ranks No. 32 in career receiving yards with 1,038 on 67 catches and eight touch- downs. Natale had a sensational debut as a sophomore in the third game of the sea- son when his 8-yard touchdown with 49 seconds left gave the Lions a come- from-behind 14-10 win over Iowa. Be- fore Natale's senior year, Paterno said, "I wouldn't trade Nate for any tight end in the country. We have never had anybody catch the ball more consistently in games. … He has fine all-around ability and is a clutch performer." Natale was drafted by San Francisco but never played pro football. Pat Freiermuth 2018- 6-5 | 256 | Merrimac, Mass. Freiermuth's place on the list of Penn State's all-time great tight ends will de- pend on what happens in the 2020 sea- son. The coaching staff is hopeful that he'll have another big year. "We think we have one of the best tight ends in college football," Franklin has said. SPECIAL MENTION There is a long list of other very good Penn State tight ends. Here are a few who rate mentioning for one reason or another, listed in chrono- logical order with their last season in parenthesis: Bob Parsons (1971), Brad Scovill (1980), Mike McCloskey (1986), Al Golden (1991), Troy Drayton (1992), Tony Stewart (2000), John Gilmore (2001), Isaac Smolko (2005), Andrew Quarless (2009) and Jesse James (2014). ■ No. 37 in Lou Prato's book Autographed copies available via louprato@comcast.net or through Lou Prato & Associates at 814-954-5171 Price: $16.95 plus shipping, handling and tax where applicable Also available with autograph: Lou's book "We Are Penn State: The Remarkable Journey of the 2012 Nittany Lions" Price: $19.95 plus shipping and tax where applicable 2 0 2 0 S E A S O N