Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1529598
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 4 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M formation and has accounted for touch- downs receiving, rushing and passing. He had a game for the ages in Penn State's 33-30 road win over USC: he touched the ball 19 times three different ways for 237 total yards; tied an FBS record for a tight end with 17 receptions for 224 yards, in- cluding a scoring catch where he lined up as center eligible and snapped to the shotgun quarterback; carried the ball for a first down and completed a pass from the wildcat quarterback position. "Against Kent State, he caught five passes for 50 yards and a score, threw a 17-yard touchdown pass and had one carry for 16 yards after faking a pass." Warren is also a semifinalist for the Mackey Award, which goes to the na- tion's top tight end. There are eight players in contention for the award, but it could end up being a two-man race between Warren and Bowling Green standout Harold Fannin Jr. From a statistical perspective, Fan- nin was outpacing his Penn State coun- terpart heading into the final weeks of the regular season. Through Bowling Green's first 10 games, the junior had amassed 83 catches for 1,170 yards and 8 touchdowns. And yet, there is no tight end in the country who has displayed as much ver- satility as Warren this year. While that does not make him a shoo-in for the honor, it does give his résumé a dimen- sion that no other player can match. "It's very cool to be on that list with some other great tight ends," Warren said prior to the Nittany Lions' game against Washington. "Being able to play tight end at Penn State is a really cool thing that not many people get to do. That's something I take a lot of pride in." "Like I always say, I'm trying to be the best tight end and make sure the offense is working as well as it can. That's how we all think of it in our tight ends room. If other stuff comes with it, that'll hap- pen. But I'm just focused on being the best version of myself and doing what- ever I can to help our offense." Three other Penn State players are vying for postseason honors. Junior defensive end Abdul Carter has been named a semifinalist for the Lombardi and Bednarik awards, which go to the nation's outstanding lineman and top defensive player, respectively. He's also in contention for the Lott IM- PACT Trophy, and he and Warren are both semifinalists for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award. Carter had 17.5 tackles for loss, 8 sacks and 2 forced fumbles through 10 games. Junior quarterback Drew Allar is a semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award, presented to the nation's top quarterback. Prior to Penn State's visit to Minnesota on Nov. 23, he had com- pleted 71.9 percent of his passes for 2,253 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Also, redshirt freshman offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh is one of 14 players vying for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award. Donkhoh started Penn State's first seven games at right tackle this season before being injured against Wisconsin on Oct. 26. Redshirt junior Nolan Rucci started in his place against Ohio State, but Donkoh still saw 38 snaps on offense against the Buckeyes, and he was back in the starting lineup against Washing- ton and Purdue. ■ Tight Ends Have Thrived During Franklin Era When he arrived at Penn State in 2014, James Franklin inherited a lot of problems stemming from the NCAA sanctions that had been imposed two years earlier, but he also had some considerable assets at his disposal. Among the most noteworthy was tight end Jesse James. A holdover from the Bill O'Brien coaching era, James was one of the most reliable pass- catching threats on a team that had been hindered by scholarship cuts and struggled to generate yards and points. He was Penn State's second-leading receiver in Franklin's first season, totaling 38 catches for 396 yards. His 3 touchdown catches led the team. James went on to play eight seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and his suc- cessors at Penn State have enjoyed their share of collegiate and professional success, too. Here's a year-by-year look at PSU's most-productive tight ends during the Franklin era. — Matt Herb PSU'S TOP TIGHT ENDS YEAR-BY-YEAR Year Player GP Rec. Yds. TD Long Avg./G 2024 Tyler Warren 10 67 808 5 38 80.8 2023 Tyler Warren 13 34 422 7 75 32.5 2022 Brenton Strange 13 32 362 5 67 27.8 2021 Brenton Strange 13 20 225 3 40 17.3 2020 Pat Freiermuth 4 23 310 1 74 77.5 2019 Pat Freiermuth 13 43 507 7 28 39.0 2018 Pat Freiermuth 13 26 368 8 27 28.3 2017 Mike Gesicki 13 57 563 9 35 43.3 2016 Mike Gesicki 14 48 679 5 53 48.5 2015 Kyle Carter 12 14 135 0 35 11.3 2014 Jesse James 13 38 396 3 44 30.5 Jesse James was Penn State's starting tight end in 2014 when Franklin took over as head coach. His 38 catches that year ranked second on the team behind DaeSean Hamilton's 82. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL