Although waiting for the next Garrett Mills or Charles Clay at TU might cause some frustration, Tulsa has plenty of options at tight end to elevate the position.
Even with tight ends blocking much more than catching passes in Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery's offense, there have been indications that Golden Hurricane tight ends may become more active in the passing game than they have been in the last four years.
"We're going to add some new facets to it, some new faces to it," Montgomery said of the tight end position. "I feel very confident we've got the guys who can get this done and really raise the bar in what we're asking our tight ends to do."
James Palmer is the returning starter, and he showed potential as a redshirt freshman in 2019. The 6-4, 251-pound Westmoore graduate started eight of 12 games and caught four passes for 81 yards, averaging 20.2 yards per catch while showing big play ability.
Ethan Hall is an intriguing prospect from Bixby. The 6-3, 200-pound freshman caught a pass for 39 yards and a touchdown last season, and maintained his freshman status by playing in only four games.
Also returning is 6-3, 249-pound junior walk-on Abe Anderson from Metro Christian, who played mostly on special teams last season.
Newcomers include 6-4, 240-pound junior college transfer Jacob Kainer, and 6-3, 220-pound Bayne Tryon, who caught 17 passes for 400 yards and three touchdowns as a senior at Cy-Fair High School in Houston.
"Bayne Tryon is a kid out of the Houston area that I think is a tremendous talent," Montgomery said.
Kainer figures to have a chance to play immediately as the No. 3 ranked juco tight end by JC Gridiron.
A second team JC All-American at Tyler (TX) Junior College, Kainer caught 18 passes for 299 yards and three touchdowns as a sophomore in 2019. The athletic Kainer was a high school quarterback at Cypress Woods HS in Cypress, Texas.
"We've got a lot of faces in there," Montgomery said. "Now we've just got to have guys rotate in there and get the job done, bring some different facets to the game."
