Our summer series ranking the best Penn State football players of the last 25 years continues on with a position that’s evolved into one of the program’s strongest — tight end.

As a reminder, we had 10 Penn State beat writers form a panel of voters to determine the best Nittany Lions at each position since the 2000 season, along with the top 10 offensive and defensive players overall, based on their stats, accomplishments and the eye test.

That panel is made up of Neil Rudel (Altoona Mirror), Rich Scarcella (Reading Eagle), Audrey Snyder (The Nittany Dispatch), Mark Brennan (Lions247), Mark Wogenrich (Penn State on SI), Frank Bodani (York Daily Record), Daniel Gallen (Lions247), Johnny McGonigal (PennLive), Josh Moyer (Centre Daily Times) and Jon Sauber (Centre Daily Times).

And at the end of each week, you’ll have a chance to vote on each position in a poll at the bottom of the story and have your say on the best Nittany Lions since 2000. Results will be shared at the end of the series later this summer.

Enough small talk. Let’s get to the 10 best PSU tight ends of the last 25 years.

Note: All stats and years played are from 2000 and beyond unless otherwise noted. First-place votes are in parentheses for players with a high rank of one.

10. John Gilmore

High rank: 8 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 9.8

Years played (after 1999): 2000-2001

Like many Penn State tight ends of the Joe Paterno era, Gilmore’s value wasn’t directly found on the stat sheet. He didn’t exactly strike fear into opposing defenses as a receiving threat — as a senior, he was third on the team in receiving (284 yards) — but he was a strong, consistent force who wouldn’t be denied as a blocker. In fact, the retired 10-season NFL vet once told the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that he didn’t much mind if they threw passes his way but he’d be “a little ticked off” if he wasn’t in position to block. “I take pleasure in blocking,” Gilmore said at the time. He was a 2001 co-captain for Penn State and was named the team’s Outstanding Senior Player.

9. Tony Stewart

High rank: 6 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 9

Years played (after 1999): 2000

The two-year starter may have played for just one season during our eligible 25-year time period, but our voters valued quality over quantity. As previously mentioned, tight ends weren’t typically a big part of the passing offense while Joe Paterno was head coach — but Stewart was an exception. In 2000, His 38 catches for 451 yards set a school record at the time for most single-season catches by a tight end, and it was the first time a tight end led PSU in receiving since 1979. He was a semifinalist for the inaugural John Mackey Award, in addition to earning honorable mention All-America honors from one publication. He played nine seasons in the NFL.

8. Kyle Carter

High rank: 6 | Low rank: NR | Average rank: 8.7

Years played: 2012-2015

If you had to choose a tight end who ushered in Penn State’s shift to “TEU,” Carter is a good place to start. In the key 2012 season, when the Nittany Lions were contending with unprecedented sanctions, Carter burst onto the scene as a rookie — after starting the spring as a fourth-stringer. With 36 catches for 453 yards, he earned first-team All-Big Ten honors and was also named a Freshman All-American. Injuries, such as a broken right wrist with ligament damage, limited what could have been a promising career. But Carter still played in 43 career games and was responsible for several highlights as an upperclassman, such as catching the game-winning TD in overtime of the 2014 Pinstripe Bowl.

7. Andrew Quarless

High rank: 4 | Low rank: 9 | Average rank: 6.4

Years played: 2006-2009

When Quarless’ career came to an end after the 2009 season, only one Penn State tight end in school history had more career receiving yards (1,146) — legend Ted Kwalick, a staple on several all-century college football teams. (Kwalick’s 1,343 yards from the 1960s wouldn’t be broken until years later with Mike Gesicki.) Quarless impressed from the moment he stepped on campus, earning first-team Freshman All-Big Ten honors from the Sporting News. But he was suspended multiple times for violations of team rules and was nearly kicked off the team, before having a heart-to-heart with Joe Paterno and changing his ways. Quarless’ athleticism was unquestioned, his blocking improved, and he became an All-Big Ten honorable mention as a senior. He went on to have a seven-year NFL career, winning a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers in 2011.

6. Theo Johnson

High rank: 4 | Low rank: 8 | Average rank: 6

Years played: 2020-2023

Sure, Johnson finished his seasons in receiving yardage behind fellow TE Brenton Strange and then TE Tyler Warren. But the 6-foot-6 Canadian was an athletic freak and a favorite end-zone target, one who caught 12 career TDs to go along with his 77 career catches and 938 yards. His Relative Athletic Score (RAS) at the NFL Combine even measured a 9.93 out of 10, ranking him as the No. 9 testing tight end out of more than 1,100 prospects since 1987. He was a semifinalist for the Mackey Award, an All-Big Ten honorable mention and a fourth-round NFL draft pick.

5. Brenton Strange

High rank: 4 | Low rank: 7 | Average rank: 5.7

Years played: 2019-2022

Blue collar? Check. Enjoys blocking? Check. Athletic? Check. Yeah, Strange definitely belongs as the prototypical Penn State tight end. The West Virginia native, who said he grew up with a chip on his shoulder, never had his work ethic or reliability questioned. He was versatile enough to line up in-line or at H-back, and he was lauded by fellow receivers (like Jahan Dotson) for springing them to big plays and by quarterbacks for his soft hands. He finished his Penn State career with 70 catches for 755 yards and 11 touchdowns, and he was twice named to the All-Big Ten team — both as an honorable mention (2021) and as a third-teamer (2022). He was a second-round NFL draft pick.

4. Jesse James

High rank: 4 | Low rank: 5 | Average rank: 4.7

Years played: 2012-2014

James helped set a new standard at Penn State almost immediately. As a freshman, he tied what was then the school’s single-season TD record by a tight end (5), and his production never faltered. He left Happy Valley after three seasons and 11 career TDs, which was also then a record among Nittany Lion TEs. (It’s since been broken.) James wasn’t the loudest player on the field, but he let his play do the talking. And at 6-foot-7, he haunted DBs and LBs in the red zone. He was twice an All-Big Ten honorable mention and was drafted in the fifth round.

3. Pat Freiermuth

High rank: 2 | Low rank: 3 | Average rank: 2.7

Years played: 2018-2020

When it came to ranking Penn State’s tight ends, it was the top 3 — and then everyone else. It’s not hard to see why. Freiermuth was the first Nittany Lion to be honored as the Kwalick–Clark Tight End of the Year in 2020, and his career stats remain near the top of basically every school TE category: 92 catches; 1,185 yards; 16 TDs. Maybe he didn’t like being known as “Baby Gronk,” a reference to NFL great Rob Gronkowski, but making one-handed catches (like he did against Ohio State in 2018) never allowed the nickname to die down. He was a two-time team captain, a three-time All-Big Ten selection and a second-team All-American. Freiermuth remains a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who selected him in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

2. Mike Gesicki

High rank: 2 | Low rank: 3 | Average rank: 2.3

Years played: 2014-2017

Watch the film, or glance at the stats, and it doesn’t take long to realize that Gesicki is one of the greatest tight ends to ever play for Penn State — whether we’re looking at the last 25 years or 125 years. (We’ll help with the stat-glance here: 129 catches; 1,481 yards, 15 TDs.) But what is sometimes forgotten about Gesicki’s career is that, early on, he was plagued by drops. During his sophomore campaign, he had 13 catches — and five drops. Five. One season later, with unprecedented work in the offseason, that all changed. He caught his first 45 balls without a single drop, and he never looked back. He eventually turned into a finalist for the Mackey Award, a second-team All-American and a two-time All-Big Ten selection. He was a fiery leader, one whose value went beyond the gridiron, and his dynamic catching ability was a boon to the offense.

1. Tyler Warren

High rank: 1 (10) | Low rank: 1 | Average rank: 1

Years played: 2020-2024

Penn State’s top TE is both obvious and unanimous. Forget the last quarter century, Warren’s 2024 campaign was one of the greatest overall receiving performances in Penn State history. He set a single-season Penn State record in receptions (104), boasted the second-most PSU receiving yards in a season (1,233) and added a respectable eight receiving touchdowns. Oh, and on top of all that, Mr. Versatility lined up just about everywhere — quarterback, receiver, running back, center, etc. He finished seventh in the Heisman voting, won the Mackey Award, was named a first-team All-American and became a first-round NFL draft pick. He left Happy Valley as its most decorated tight end in history, and it’s incredibly difficult envisioning another TE knocking off Warren as Penn State’s best-ever. After all, when’s the next time a Nittany Lion TE will get a first-place Heisman vote? This isn’t recency bias; Warren was just a generational talent.