STATE COLLEGE — Penn State’s Tyler Warren is making a name for himself in the new-look Nittany Lion offense this season.
The tight end leads Penn State with 513 receiving yards on 40 receptions this season.
On Saturday, Oct. 12, Warren cemented himself as one of the John Mackey Award favorites with his performance against USC.
The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football’s most outstanding tight end.
Warren recorded 17 receptions for 224 yards and a touchdown in an overtime thriller in Los Angeles.
“I’m very happy with the performance, but it’s not something I was shooting for anything like that,” Warren said. “I’m just, you know, doing my job within each play. And I had more receptions this week, so the numbers were a little higher.”
The 17 receptions tied the FBS record for catches by a tight end in a single game. He now shares this record with Northwestern’s Jon Harvey in 1982 and New Mexico’s Emilio Vallez in 1967.
His 224 receiving yards set a Penn State and Big Ten tight end record. Warren is also the first FBS tight end to go over 200 receiving yards in a game since Utah’s Dalton Kincaid had 234 receiving yards against USC on Oct. 15, 2022.
“I’ve been talking about him being the best tight end in college football,” head coach James Franklin said. “But the reality is, he’s now part of a conversation on one of the best players in all of college football.”
The highlight of his historical day was a 32-yard touchdown grab over his defender. On a play where Drew Allar lined up out wide and Warren as a center, the tight end was eventually found streaking toward the endzone.
“We talked about one of the keys this week was playing to win and not being conservative,” Tyler Warren said. “And (Kotelnicki) told us as soon as we got past the 50, on the left side of the field, that he was going to call that play. We knew he wasn’t lying, and we were preparing to do it. We had practiced it a bunch of times.”
Warren is more than just a tight end, though. This season the 6-foot-6 261-pounder has taken snaps at tight end, quarterback, running back and center.
The senior played quarterback during high school and offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki is not afraid to show it. Warren has two completions for 26 yards and a touchdown this year from under center.
Warren also has five rush attempts for 38 yards and a touchdown.
The senior was given +10,000 odds to win the Heisman by Draft Kings following his performance against USC. No tight end has ever won the award.
