The Penn State Nittany Lions may lack the elite talent at wide receiver at times but, the talent level at tight end is always among the best in the Country. The Nittany Lions have gone from star to star transitioning from Mike Gesicki to Pat Freiermuth to Brenton Strange to Theo Johnson and to it's latest and biggest star Tyler Warren. When Penn State loses it's star tight end to the NFL it's never a concern because the next star is likely stepping into the role.
Heading into the 2025 season, the next star in line for Penn State is rising Sophomore tight end Luke Reynolds. As a recruit, Luke Reynolds was the 29th ranked player in his class and the top tight end in the Country. Despite being in a room with Tyler Warren and Khalil Dinkins, Reynolds was able to make an impact as soon as he arrived on campus.
As a True Freshman for the Nittany Lions, Luke Reynolds appeared in all 16 games starting 4 of the games. Despite having a limited role behind Tyler Warren, Luke Reynolds caught 9 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 32 yards on a fake punt.
Get up, Luke Reynolds
— Alex Rocco (@AlexRocco13_) September 21, 2024
Just the second grab of his young Penn State career
pic.twitter.com/8mUwNBDYdj
Heading into the 2025 season, Khalil Dinkins will most likely be the "starting" tight end but, Luke Reynolds will be the more effective receiver. Whenever Luke Reynolds was on the field the athletic ability flashed to the point where with a full offseason under his belt and a ton of experience already it's hard to imagine he won't take a bigger leap.
It's truly difficult to earn playing time as a True Freshman for James Franklin yet, Reynolds was one of two Freshmen on offense not to redshirt alongside Offensive Lineman Cooper Cousins. Oftentimes when a player is that talented this early in their career, when they do finally earn the starting role they hit the ground running like many of Penn State's tight ends have shown.
The Nittany Lions return one of the best quarterbacks in the Country in Drew Allar which makes having an exciting passing game much easier. Last season, Allar relied heavily on Tyler Warren and with 104 catches to replace, Reynolds and Dinkins will be in line for plenty of targets. In the second season with Andy Kotelnicki running the offense, this should be an exciting season in Happy Valley.