KABrother's 2015 Football Preview - Tight Ends

[KABrother88]

Next up on the 2015 Football Preview is the TE position. Many unknowns as virtually all of our experience at the position is now gone.

 

Note:

* represents player was a starter at the end of 2014.

 

** represents player was 2nd team at the end of 2014.

 

Letter in ( ) represents what eligibility player will/would have had starting the season with "E" being exhausted eligibility.

 

Who We Lost:

Payden McVey* (E)

Dillon Barrett** (Sr)

Garrett Drake (Jr)

 

Who We Return:

Brandon Beaton (Jr)

Tate Smith (R-Fr)

 

Who We Added:

DeAndre Jennings (Jr)

Duncan McVey (Fr)

Sam McGee (Fr)

 

What We Know:

McVey and Barrett both put up decent numbers in 2014 while splitting the vast majority of the action. With McVey having graduated and Barrett transferring to Ole Miss, the TE position will be a question mark heading into the year. Brandon Beaton is the only returner to have appeared in a game before and has only caught 1 pass in that time.

 

What To Watch For:

DeAndre Jennings transfers in having played the last 2 seasons at Northeast Oklahoma A&M. He was lightly used in the passing game there but played in a run heavy offense. Duncan McVey comes in having also played in an offense that kept the ball on the ground. He has a bigger frame than his older brother but it remains to be seen if he can outdo him on the field.

 

What to Expect:

It's been that said Chuck Langston will run a similar offense so we will see if the TE position is utilized any differently. You would think it would be a key component while breaking in a new QB so I think the loss of an experienced player like Barrett will be tough. With so much turnover at the position it's tough to make that call on what to expect.

 

My Week 1 Prediction:

1 - Jennings

2 - Beaton

 

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Quarterbacks

Runningbacks

Wide Receivers

[eagle eye]

I said that I wanted to see the tight end preview and it sort of scares me. It's not a huge stretch to pick Jennings and Beaton to be 1 and 2 because they are the only ones that aren't freshmen. I do think that Beaton would have the inside track at being #1 only because he has been in the program and your assessment that he did a nice job last season. Again, you are right if the tight end will be primarily a blocker but if they want some offense out of the position then Beaton has to be the clear choice.

 

Thanks for work, keep it coming.

[KABrother88]

To be honest I flipped flopped this one several times just for the reasons you stated. In the end my thinking was that while yes Beaton has been in the program longer, his game time reps have been very limited vs Jennings who had more reps even if it was at a JUCO. In the end I could be dead wrong (first time for everything right?!) and Smith or McVey might exceed 2015 expectations and jump into the conversation.