As the college football offseason slugs on, we get into another week of rankings. Here, we have tight ends. While this group isn’t as exciting as last year’s with Kyle Pitts leading the 2020 pack, this position is very deep this year and we have a lot of players who can make some key impacts on their squads. Breakout players are afoot all over here, so let’s get into our 2021 tight end rankings.
Be sure to check out all of Charlie’s College Football Positional Rankings.
1. Charlie Kolar– Iowa State
Kolar is the second Iowa State player to be the number one on one of our lists. He is accompanied by running back Breece Hall who has a legitimate shot at the Heisman Trophy this year. Many thought Kolar would head to the NFL Draft after his 2020 season, but now, he’s back and better than ever. Kolar will thrive in the Cyclones’ offense this year, as the team retains almost all of their offensive starters. Last season, Kolar caught 44 balls for 590 yards and seven touchdowns. Now, he looks to improve his production and continue to be an X-factor for this Iowa State team.
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2. Jalen Wydermyer– Texas A&M
Wydermyer is probably the tight end getting the most hype this offseason, and for good reason. The 6’5” freak athlete was a big focal point in a loaded Texas A&M offense last season. Wydermyer caught 46 passes which led to 506 yards and six touchdowns. Going into his true junior season, Wydermyer will retain the starting tight end role for the third year in a row, and look to make a big impact with a new quarterback at the helm for the Aggies. He’s no Pitts, but Wydermyer could be the next great SEC tight end.
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3. Jake Ferguson– Wisconsin
Wisconsin’s run of elite, sure-handed, tight ends continues here with Ferguson. He’s not going to get that star recognition but Ferguson is a really good player. He’s easily the best tight end in the Big-10, and that point was asserted when he was named to the first-team all Big-10. Ferguson recorded just over 300 yards on 30 catches last season, which earned him a total of four touchdowns. In Wisconsin’s offense, he’s not going to rack up the stats, but he’ll be able to do his role and turn some heads both at the college, and professional level.
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4. Jeremy Ruckert– Ohio State
Here is when the stats start to fall off a bit and we have to start predicting the breakout players. Ruckert saw really limited action last season but he showed out nicely. Ruckert only caught 13 balls last year for 153 yards, however, five of these catches were for touchdowns. The flashes he showed, especially as a vertical threat, are a real cause for excitement for Buckeye fans. We should see Ruckert take over as the main tight end target this year, and will have to fight for targets in a loaded wide receiver room. However, Ruckert should be able to carve out a nice role for himself in the end run.
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5. Michael Mayer– Notre Dame
Another guy who didn’t light up the stats last year, but is still a really interesting player for this season. Going into his true sophomore season, Notre Dame will look to get even more usage out of Mayer. He caught 42 passes for 450 yards last season with two touchdowns. With the departure of Tommy Tremble, even more, targets should head Mayer’s way. Overall, Mayer could be one of the biggest breakout players this year and become a big-time name in college football.
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6. Isaac Rex– BYU
One of star quarterback Zach Wilson’s top targets last year, Rex had a huge season statistically. He only had 37 catches for over 400 yards, but this came with 12 touchdowns along the way. Rex is a real red-zone and vertical threat for the Cougars and gives defenses a tough time because of his 6’6” size. As he’s only a rising sophomore, Rex should have a big career ahead of him, and it’s started off quite nicely.
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7. Greg Dulcich– UCLA
Dulcich was UCLA’s team leader in both receptions and receiving yards last season. Now, before we get overly excited about it, the UCLA football team is not a very good one, and targets for Dulcich were at a premium. He had 26 catches for just over 500 yards and five touchdowns last season. His average of 20 yards per catch was one of the overall best in the nation and Dulcich presents himself as a huge threat in his offense. If the Bruins can get the defense’s attention off of him, Dulcich will be a real playmaker next year and move up this list easily.
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8. Peyton Hendershot– Indiana
For the second week in a row, an Indiana player makes this list. Last week, we saw Ty Fryfogle as one of the top wide receivers in college football, and now, we pair him up with one of the best tight ends. After being suspended for a bit of the 2020 season, Hendershot caught 23 passes for 151 yards and four touchdowns. Before the suspension, however, he was one of the premier tight ends in college football. In 2019, Hendershot caught 52 passes for over 620 yards and four touchdowns. In a full season, Hendershot will be a real weapon to watch out for on the field.
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9. Cade Otton– Washington
Another PAC-12 tight end, who led his team in catches and receiving yards last year. While he did only play four games, Otton was able to nab 18 balls for 258 yards and three touchdowns. This performance was good enough to land him on the All-PAC-12 first team, showing that he’s one of the premier tight ends in the conference. With the shortened season, however, we aren’t fully sold on Otton just yet, but if he can produce as he did last year, he’ll be one of the best tight ends in the nation, and likely an early draft pick.
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10. Arik Gilbert– Georgia
This one is really hard to tell. Gilbert just transferred to Georgia recently, but the guy’s talent is too hard to hold back on. Last season, as a true freshman for LSU, Gilbert caught three passes for just over 300 yards and two touchdowns. He’s an athletic freak on the field and is a tight end that can get out into space super nicely. It may be hard for Gilbert to carve out a starting role at first, but somewhere down the line he should become a major impact player for the Bulldogs.
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