College Football: Top 50 players for 2017

With the departure of receiver Chris Godwin, Mike Gesicki becomes the No. 1 target on an offense that took shots down the field. While he might not have the top-end speed of Godwin, Gesicki has the size to create mismatches all over the field.

At 6-foot-6, 252 pounds Gesicki can go toe-to-toe with defensive ends when blocking on the interior. For reference, Rob Gronkowski is currently listed at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds. I’m not saying Gesicki is Gronk 2.0, but it’s worth pointing out the matchup problem he presents whenever he takes the field. Big men that can run and catch give defensive coordinators nightmares. When he’s split out, he can absolutely manhandle smaller corners.

Gesicki is the type of pro prospect that scouts are already drooling over. You can teach route running, blocking and run schemes but you can’t teach size. CBS sports has him slotted in as the No. 1 tight end prospect for the 2018 NFL Draft.

The combination of Gesicki and McSorley has the chance to become one of the better pairings in all of college football. There just aren’t many other schools that have a weapon like Gesicki. There are a lot of big tight ends in college football, but the number of tight ends with hands as good as his are few and far between. He’s going to make some noise in 2017 and possibly become the greatest red zone threat in the Big Ten.