Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Productive TEs ready to steady offense for Owls
BOCA RATON — Harrison Bryant is not a public speaker.
When he first came to FAU, addressing a group of teammates was not something that he would have been comfortable doing. But as the senior gears up for his third straight year as the Owls’ starting tight end, he has pushed himself to step into a leadership role for his team.
“Just trying to be a vocal leader, help lead people and just help the team try to take that next step,” he said. “I feel like I’m starting to get there and just trying to step into that role.”
Expectations are running high for Bryant and John Raine, the two senior tight ends who are the backbone of one of the team’s most solid position groups. Raine made strong contributions in 2018, and Bryant is coming off a year in which he caught 45 passes for 662 yards and four touchdowns. That was good enough to get his name on the John Mackey Award Watch List for 2019.
“Harry and John, I think you guys all know that those guys are phenomenal players and phenomenal people,” offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. said. “And they’ve had a great start to camp, making a lot of plays and doing a lot of good things. We’re going to have to really count on both of those guys.”
For an offense that has brought in a lot of new faces and still has yet to identify a starting quarterback, the tight ends bring some much-needed consistency to the squad. They have been one of the most impressive units on the team throughout fall camp and are confident they can lean on their experience to keep that consistency rolling into the season.
“We do a lot, so we can help the receivers out [and] help the linemen out,” Raine said. “We’ve seen a lot of looks. We’ve seen pretty much everything you can possibly see on a football field. So that definitely helps the offense.”
So far in practices and this past Saturday’s scrimmage, it hasn’t been hard for the team to take note of Bryant and Raine.
“I think the tight ends are amazing,” offensive lineman Nick Weber said. “I think we have some of the best tight ends in the country. They’ve been great and they’re going to be a big asset for us this year.”
But while there are obviously lofty expectations for the pair of seniors, they are not the only tight ends that have turned heads at fall camp.
The unit is far from top-heavy, with true freshman Rahmod Smith, who signed with the Owls this past offseason as a three-star prospect according to 247 Sports, impressing both teammates and coaches.
“Rahmod Smith is another freshman I think you’ll be hearing [about] down the line,” Weis said. “An extremely talented tight end and he’s got some really good ball skills. So he’s another guy I think that’s working his way [in]. He keeps improving [and is] somebody we can utilize as a weapon.”
Logan Peterson is another younger player that has demonstrated the depth of the position this fall. The redshirt sophomore only saw some special teams action last year, but his improvements throughout the offseason have set him up as another longterm option for the Owls.
“Logan Peterson’s a guy that hasn’t played very much here,” Weis said. ‘But he’s done a really good job of getting better and he put a lot of weight on for fall camp, and he’s improved significantly.”
With the season opener against Ohio State quickly approaching on Aug. 31, much of the offense is still working to be ready for that first game. But the tight ends feel they are well-positioned to help boost the team in 2019.
“In the tight end room, our motto is just to do our job,” Bryant said. “Whether that’s blocking, catching the ball, whatever it is, we just try to do whatever they ask of us and just provide a spark for the offense.”