By Charlie Campbell
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Heading into the 2020 college football season WalterFootball.com will debut our projections for the nation’s leaders during the fall. The All-American teams always have some surprises and the stars of next fall could be the headlining players next April in the 2020 NFL Draft.
First-Team Tight End: Kyle Pitts, Florida
Kyle Pitts was one of the SEC’s breakout players in 2019, producing an excellent season for the Gators. After serving as a backup in 2018, Pitts exploded on the scene as a sophomore. For 2019, he hauled in 54 receptions for 649 yards and five touchdowns. The season could have been bigger, however, Florida utilized a deep stable of receivers to spread the ball around, but Pitts produced a lot of big plays for the Gators. A number of those receivers, along with feature back Lamical Perine, moved to the NFL, while Gators starting quarterback Kyle Trask could be improved now that he has a year of experience. Thus, Pitts could be in store for a huge 2020.
Pitts is special as a receiver. He is fast for a tight end and really fires off the ball to get into the secondary. Not only is Pitts quick to find openings downfield, but he is a smooth mover who glides through the defense and is able to generate separation from his route-running as well. Pitts has impressive suddenness and explosiveness for a tight end, and really, he moves like a big wide receiver. Pitts uses his tall and long frame to make catches over defensive backs, and he is dangerous in the red zone with his size-mismatch ability. Pitts has solid hands, and with his great athleticism, he makes some difficult catches look easy. After the catch, his speed and agility allow him to pick up good yardage, and he had some superb runs after the catch as a sophomore.
The biggest area for Pitts to improve as a junior is his blocking ability. However, college awards often ignore well-rounded play and blocking ability in favor of stat production. Pitts could be the top receiving tight end in college football in 2020, so that could easily lead to him being the tight end who receives the most laurels.
Second-Team Tight End: Jalen Wydermyer, Texas A&M
Wydermyer (6-5, 260) created a buzz with scouts for having a good skill with a ton of upside during the 2019 season. The Aggies staff raved about Wydermyer to NFL evaluators coming through College Station. In 2019, he totaled 32 receptions for 447 yards and six touchdowns.
Wydermyer has good size to him with speed and athleticism. Now that he has experience, Wydermyer could be even better. Additionally, the Aggies lost a couple of receivers to the 2020 NFL Draft, and Wydermyer has a talented senior quarterback in Kellen Mond to work with. This could be a huge year for Wydermyer, and it would not be surprising if Jimbo Fisher leans on him heavily in the passing game.
Third-Team Tight End: Brevin Jordan, Miami
After a strong freshman season, Jordan is helping to invigorate Miami as ‘tight end U’. The Las Vegas, Nevada product had 32 receptions for 287 yards with four touchdowns in 2018. In 2019, the sophomore recorded 35 catches for 495 yards and two touchdowns. He is capable of producing more, but Miami has been inconsistent at getting him the ball. Jordan (6-4, 245) is undersized, so getting stronger and working on his blocking will be important for the NFL.
Honorable Mentions: Bowling Green’s Quintin Morris, Colorado State’s Trey McBride, BYU’s Matt Bushman, Wisconsin’s Jake Ferguson and Penn State’s Pat Freiermuth.
2020 Preseason All-American Projections:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | K/P
2020 Preseason Postseason Award Projections:
Thorpe Award | Biletnikoff Award | Outland Trophy | Rimington Trophy | Mackey Award | O'Brien Award | Doak Walker Award | Jet Award | Walter Camp Award
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | K/P
2020 Preseason Postseason Award Projections:
Thorpe Award | Biletnikoff Award | Outland Trophy | Rimington Trophy | Mackey Award | O'Brien Award | Doak Walker Award | Jet Award | Walter Camp Award
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