Nebraska football is embracing a tight end evolution

The 6-foot-5, 225-pounder from Ainsworth grabbed the spotlight with dunks at the boys’ state basketball tournament. Two-hand and one-hand. Breakaway and quick-rising. The guy putting his nose to the rim heads this summer to Nebraska’s football program — as a tight end.

“As far as athletic ability,” NU offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield said, “I don’t think I’ve coached one who’s this athletic.”

Satterfield remains the Huskers’ playcaller, but he has a new position to coach. Perhaps his favorite guys to coach. Who have to be tough, smart and versatile, who might have eight different assignments on an eight-play, 70-yard drive. The position that’s enjoying a renaissance at all levels of football — and not just because Kansas City’s Travis Kelce is dating Taylor Swift.

Success at Michigan — which frequently used two and three tight ends on its way to a College Football Playoff title — has Big Ten teams hungry for tight ends. And the state of Nebraska appears to be full of high-level tight end prospects.

Pierce’s Ben Brahmer, class of 2023, won freshman All-American honors at Iowa State after catching 28 passes for 352 yards last season. In the 2024 class, NU signed Nelson and Papillion-La Vista’s Eric Ingwerson, Iowa signed Creighton Prep’s Michael Burt and Illinois signed Cross County’s Tanner Hollinger. In the 2025 cycle, Millard South’s Chase Loftin and Platteview’s Reiman Zebert have offers from power conference teams all over the nation.

“It’s been tough keeping up with all these coaches and all these numbers in my phone,” said the 6-foot-6, 208-pound Zebert, who averaged 24.2 yards per catch last season. His mom helps him manage social media. “I’ve tried to do my best. Two phone calls per day, at least.”

Satterfield traced the tight end revolution to the mid-2000s, when Jason Witten and later Rob Gronkowski combined elite blocking with even better route running.

“The tight end position’s changed so much,” Satterfield said. “There’s not just a standard ‘Y’ tight end who’s 6-5, 250 pounds and an extension of the offensive line.”

Nebraska still wants to have a Y guy like junior Nate Boerkircher and, eventually, Husker signee Eric Ingwerson, the 6-foot-6, 253-pound Papillion-La Vista standout who Satterfield believes will give NU “a physical, mauling” presence.

But NU also has Thomas Fidone, 6-6 and 250 like Ingwerson, but leaner and more dangerous downfield. He caught 25 passes and four touchdowns last season. And with receivers coach Garret McGwire, Satterfield will share coaching duties of Janiran Bonner, who at 6-2, 220 had been more of a fullback last season, but may operate as a tight end/receiver hybrid in 2024.

“He’s a really good route runner — explosive, good hands, can change directions,” Satterfield said of Bonner. “His role this spring hopefully will flourish.”

The Huskers’ spring roster lists nine tight ends of varying sizes and skillsets. Walk-on Luke Lindenmeyer, 6-3, 260, is a road grader. Ismael Smith Flores and the newly-signed Nelson could play all over the field.

Satterfield wants to put as many on the field as he can for the matchup problems they can create. Defenses typically decide their personnel based on how many tight ends and running backs are on the field. So “13” personnel is one back, three tight ends.

“The defense’s first thought is, ‘it’s going to be a heavy set, expect run,’” Satterfield said of such an offensive personnel grouping. “So they’re probably going to sub in their big personnel and get out of nickel because they’re probably expecting a run.

Until the offense, with those tight ends, comes to the line in an “empty” set. That running back — say, Rahmir Johnson — is split out like a receiver. And so are the three tight ends. With Fidone, Nelson and Bonner combination, that’s possible.

“Now you’ve put them in a jam,” Satterfield said of the defense. “They have big people out there on defense, and you’re limiting them in what they can call on defense to stop you from throwing the football out of empty. And vice versa — maybe you’ve been in empty for two plays, and then, on the third play, you’re in a heavy set and running power down their throat. Puts ‘em in conflict, for sure.”

And while the sizes and skillsets can differ — must differ — Satterfield said he recruits two universal traits in tight ends. He looks for competitiveness, for his guys will need to win against all kinds of different defenders. He needs smart guys, too. Satterfield and coach Matt Rhule agree that tight end might be the hardest position to learn.

“A lot of 16 and 17-year-olds aren’t going to be overwhelming with their football knowledge yet but you can tell if a guy’s going to have the ability to develop his brain into a football brain,” Satterfield said. “Because tight ends are asked to do so many things throughout the system of offense.”

Fidone, a Top 100 recruit in the 2021 class, is an example. Nebraska needs to improve its passing game, Satterfield said, to take full advantage of Fidone’s speed and ability to make contested catches. But Fidone had to learn the nuances of in-line blocking, too.

“He is physical and he’s got the mindset to go finish people off, we’ve just got to continue to develop the techniques of blocking,” Satterfield said. “But it’s not an unwillingness to block. He wants to kill people out there, and he’s got a few plays (last year) where he just runs people to the turf.”

Zebert, a high three-star prospect at Platteview, will have to make a similar adjustment. As his team’s best receiver — running by defenders — he’s not asked to block much. In college, he expects to be 240 pounds while retaining his speed.

At Ainsworth, Nelson was too busy to block much, passing for 610 yards, rushing for 1,148 yards and receiving 658 yards worth of passes. He accounted for 41 total touchdowns this season, and he’s a unicorn in Satterfield’s tenure.

Years ago, Nelson might have bulked up to a big tight end or slimmed down into a tall receiver like former Husker Todd Peterson. Thanks to a tight end renaissance, he can have a foot in both worlds.

“When we recruited him, we told him, ‘you may fit under the window of tight end, but we don’t even really look at you as just a tight end,’” Satterfield said. “We looked at him as a guy who could create matchups all over the field, and use his explosiveness and athleticism to win those matchups.

“He’s got a chance to do that. I don’t know if it’s going to just happen immediately — it’s a huge transition from high school to college, from Eight-Man football to 11-man football — so I’m not sure he’s going to come in and catch 80 balls. But he has a great chance to contribute next year, for sure.”