SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Forgive the mistaken identity in the Penn State football tight end room — one of the deepest, most talented in the nation.
Take Sunday evening here in Arizona. Nittany Lion fans greeted the team as it arrived to prepare for its College Football Playoff quarterfinal game with Boise State on New Year’s Eve at the Fiesta Bowl.
True freshman tight end Luke Reynolds got off the plane first. Senior All-American tight end Tyler Warren followed later.
Reynolds is the elite, former 5-star high school prospect with the long, wavy blond hair who made one of the most critical plays of Penn State’s season.
Warren is the do-everything star with long, wavy, blond hair who has lifted up his team with a reel of stunning, unexpected plays, one game after another.
“Some kid asked me to sign a ball” Reynolds said with a smile during a Sunday team interview session, “and he says, ‘Thanks, Tyler.’
“I thought I better write No. 85 on it so he knows (it’s me). It was very humbling.”
Certainly, Reynolds and Warren, who finished seventh in the recent Heisman Trophy voting, share intriguing commonalities.
They both were high school quarterbacks before making late transitions to tight end. They own impressive athletic traits that allow them to not just power-block defenders but also outjump them on passes and outrun them with the ball.
They also still have pretty good passing arms
Both also wondered how they might fit in at Penn State when first arriving.
Here’s their often-overlooked key to success, why Reynolds appears in line as the next, great Penn State tight end:
It’s how one future-NFL Penn State player has learned from the previous one over the past decade. From Mike Gesicki to Pat Freiermuth, Brenton Strange to Theo Johnson. From Warren to redshirt junior Khalil Dinkins — and Reynolds.
“Luke’s done a tremendous job. Jumped right under Tyler’s wing and learned some of the ways he’s prepared,” said Penn State tight end coach Ty Howle.
“His background of being a quarterback, he can see the big picture of the game. The big thing for Luke is he’s really, really smart with a high football IQ coming in. It’s his background as a quarterback but also the way he prepares. He’s the ultimate in-the-building guy and always working at it.”
Penn State football, Tight End U.: Tyler Warren to Luke Reynolds
No doubt, Reynolds’ first-year stats can’t compare to Warren.
The Nittany Lion senior has broken just about every Penn State tight end record with his 92 receptions for 1,095 yards and six touchdowns. He’s also run the ball 24 times for another 197 yards (8.2 per carry) with four more scores. He hurdled a defender against Maryland. He somehow snapped the ball and caught a touchdown pass on the same play at USC.
Reynolds? He’s earned increasing playing time, in part because of an early season-ending injury to No. 2 tight end Andrew Rappleyea, part because of his rapid progress. He’s made the most of his opportunities with six receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown — a couple of them highlight grabs.
He also executed one of the most important plays of this playoff-run season. The Lions were clinging to a one-point lead at Minnesota, the weekend before Thanksgiving, when they faced a fourth down late. Instead of punting, Reynolds took the direct snap and sprinted through some perfect blocking for 32 yards and a first down.
“For us to trust a freshman to do that …,” Howle said on Monday after the game.
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Of course, Reynolds is learning from the most versatile tight end ever at Penn State, if not the best. One of the most versatile stars in the nation.
The senior and freshman roomed together on road trips this season.
“You’re able to see, first-person, how he operates and you take little pieces from that,” Reynolds said. “Like taking a test every night before the game, going over play calls, seeing him reviewing it all, drawing the plays out, just those extra mental reps to prepare for the game.”
One tight end to another.
One star to another?
“He can do a little bit of everything,” Warren said. “He’s a guy who’s going to be really special at Penn State.”
Frank Bodani covers Penn State football for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at fbodani@ydr.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: From Penn State football star tight end Tyler Warren to Luke Reynolds
