Celebrating National Tight Ends Day by looking at high school football's best

Sunday is National Tight Ends Day across the NFL.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle started the pseudo holiday in 2018 and the NFL officially recognized it in 2019 to honor the contributions of one of the game's most demanding positions.

Lightly-recruited with only four offers out of Norman (Okla.), Kittle went on to star at Iowa before being taken in the fifth round of the 2017 draft by the 49ers. He has since become one of the best and most popular tight ends in the league as a six-time Pro Bowler with more than 7,400 career receiving yards.


Season at a glance: Had his biggest game of the season in a 27-24 win over then-No. 2 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) with five catches for 105 yards and two scores. In all, Bowman has 279 yards on 21 receptions for the No. 12 Monarchs.

Kaiden Prothro, Bowdon (Ga.)
College destination: Georgia
Season at a glance: Already a two-time state champion – he scored touchdowns in both championship games – Prothro leads the Red Devils with 494 yards (70.6 per game) and 10 TDs.

Ian Premer, Great Bend (Kan.)
College destination: Notre Dame
Season at a glance: Leads an unbeaten Panthers team with 526 yards on 25 catches with 10 scores. Great Bend is ranked No. 5 in the state of Kansas.

Kendre Harrison, Reidsville (N.C.)
College destination: Oregon
Season at a glance: Averaging 82.3 receiving yards per game with 581 on the year. He is tied for the team lead with 13 touchdowns for the 7-2 Rams.

Brock Harris, Pine View (St. George, Utah)
College destination: BYU
Season at a glance: Leads the Panthers with 866 yards and 14 TDs. Harris helped Pine View (6-3) earn the No. 6 seed in the Class 4A state playoffs.

Israel Briggs, Clovis (Calif.)
College destination: Miami
Season at a glance: In five games, Briggs has 270 yards on 17 catches with three touchdowns for the second-ranked team in the CIF Central Section.

Mack Sutter, Dunlap (Ill.)
College destination: Alabama
Season at a glance: Sutter has helped a 6-2 Dunlap team with 29 catches for 562 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also has two sacks, 16 tackles and two forced fumbles on the defensive end.

Brayden Fogle, Lexington (Ohio)
College destination: Georgia
Season at a glance: Has helped Lexington to its most wins in a season since 2016 with 20 catches, 406 yards and a team-high seven TDs. He also serves as the team's punter.

Xavier Tiller, Langston Hughes (Fairburn, Ga.)
College destination: Florida State
Season at a glance: Has 12 catches for 157 yards and six touchdowns through an 8-0 start for the Panthers, who are ranked No. 3 in the Georgia AAAAA field.

J.C. Anderson, Mt. Zion (Ill.)
College destination: Mississippi
Season at a glance: Has posted career highs with 38 receptions, 489 yards and six touchdowns while the Braves are 7-1. Anderson has scored at least one TD in his past four games.

Evan Jacobson, Waukee (Iowa)
College destination: Texas A&M
Season at a glance: One of three Iowans on the list, Jacobson has posted 19 receptions for 266 yards as the Warriors have battled through a 3-5 season.

Lincoln Keyes, Saline (Mich.)
College destination: Georgia
Season at a glance: Has 25 catches for 448 yards and seven touchdowns for a 7-1 Hornets squad that is looking to wrap up the outright Southeastern Red championship.

Matt Ludwig, Billings West (Billings, Mont.)
College destination: Michigan
Season at a glance: Leads the Golden Bears with 33 catches, 521 yards and eight TDs. Billings West is currently atop the Montana AA Eastern League standings.

Caleb Tafua, Mesa (Ariz.)
College destination: Texas A&M
Season at a glance: An instant impact player since coming off his transfer sit-out period. In two games with Mesa, Tafua has 13 catches for 130 yards and a score in back-to-back wins.

Ty Goettsche, Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village, Colo.)
College destination: BYU
Season at a glance: Leads the top team in Colorado in touchdown catches with seven. The BYU commit has hauled in 15 catches for 273 yards and has the Bruins on a 21-game win streak looking for back-to-back state titles.

Taimane Purcell, Kamehameha Kapalama (Honolulu, Hawaii)
College destination: California
Season at a glance: The Warriors have steadily improved in each of Purcell's three varsity seasons, going from a winless league slate in 2023 to 2-3 in ’24 and fighting for a league title in ’25.

Ahmad Hudson, Ruston (La.)
Recruiting outlook: 26 FBS offers, including Alabama, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon, Texas
Season at a glance: The No. 9 overall prospect in the Class of 2027 has 33 catches for 534 yards and seven TDs for the Bearcats, who rank third in the state of Louisiana.

Brock Williams, Libertyville (Ill.)
Recruiting outlook: 38 FBS offers, including Georgia, Ohio State, Texas, Alabama, Notre Dame
Season at a glance: Leads Libertyville with 33 receptions, 510 yards and nine scores. The Wildcats are 5-3 with one regular season game remaining.

Jaxon Dollar, East Lincoln (Denver, N.C.)
Recruiting outlook: 31 FBS offers, including Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Ohio State
Season at a glance: Leads all high school tight ends with 969 receiving yards and 18 TDs. Has scored in all but one game for the 8-1 Mustangs.

Korz Loken, Iola-Scandinavia (Iola, Wis.)
Recruiting outlook: 17 FBS offers, including Arkansas, Auburn, Florida State, Indiana, Notre Dame
Season at a glance: Had a season-ending injury in the second game. In the opener, Loken showed his versatility with 113 rushing yards, 59 receiving yards, two total TDs as well as four tackles for loss.

Seneca Driver, Boyle County (Danville, Ky.)
Recruiting outlook: 39 FBS offers, including Alabama, Florida, Louisville, Penn State, Texas
Season at a glance: Has the Rebels out to a 7-1 start. In his most recent game, Driver had four catches for 132 yards and also had a pick-six on defense.

Brooks Bakko, Kindred (N.D.)
Recruiting outlook: 14 FBS offers, including Arizona, Duke, Michigan, Oklahoma, Utah
Season at a glance: Has nine touchdowns in eight games, totaling 32 catches for a team high 614 yards as the Vikings look for a second state title in the past three seasons.

Jack Brown, Howell Central (St. Charles, Mo.)
Recruiting outlook: 34 FBS offers, including Alabama, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas, USC
Season at a glance: Brown has been a menace on both sides of the ball, showing versatility with touchdown scores through the air, on the ground and with his arm as well as a 70-yard interception return for a TD.

Malik Howard, Oak Ridge (Tenn.)
Recruiting outlook: 29 FBS offers, including Florida State, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, Purdue
Season at a glance: A big reason for the Wildcats' 8-0 start is Howard, the team leader with 37 grabs, 549 yards and six scores. He is approaching 1,000 receiving yards for his career.

Rahzario Edwards, Grant (Sacramento, Calif.)
Recruiting outlook: 24 FBS offers, including Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, Stanford
Season at a glance: Helped the Pacers win a state championship as a sophomore. As a junior, "Zo" has 595 yards on 21 receptions with four touchdowns.

Cooper Terwilliger, Pierre T.F. Riggs (Pierre, S.D.)
Recruiting outlook: 21 FBS offers, including Georgia, Iowa, Iowa State, Michigan, Nebraska
Season at a glance: Has 27 catches for 351 yards and two touchdowns for the Governors, who are the second-ranked team in South Dakota's 11AA rankings.

Titus Hawk, Choctaw (Okla.)
Recruiting outlook: 21 FBS offers, including Arizona, Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas A&M
Season at a glance: Hawk has 18 receptions for 340 yards and five scores.

Landon Blum, Woodbine (Iowa)
Recruiting outlook: 10 FBS offers, including Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas State, Northwestern
Season at a glance: Has the ability to get over the top of defenses and has helped the Tigers to a 7-0 record. Blum has 33 receptions for 649 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Zac Fares, Arbor View (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Recruiting outlook: 40 FBS offers, including Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Notre Dame, USC
Season at a glance: Helped Arbor View to the school's first state championship appearance last year. In 2025, Fares has 30 receptions for 412 yards and six touchdowns for a 7-2 Aggies team that is ranked fourth in Nevada.

Tytan McNeal, Eastside Catholic (Sammamish, Wash.)
Recruiting outlook: 20 FBS offers, including BYU, Miami, Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee
Season at a glance: The top-rated tight end prospect in the Class of 2028 has helped Eastside Catholic to a 6-1 record with 19 catches, 413 yards and four touchdowns.

Jevyn Severson, Madrid (Iowa)
Recruiting outlook: Seven FBS offers, including Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Nebraska, Wisconsin
Season at a glance: Severson has 16 receptions for 264 yards with three TDs. Also a standout basketball player and track and field thrower in the spring.