All 105 is a Nittany Sports Now series profiling each Penn State football player. This edition will look at sophomore tight end Tyler Warren.
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 256 pounds
Hometown: Mechanicsville, Virginia
Before Penn State: Along with being an All-State baseball player and four-time All-Region selection in basketball, Warren captained the football team in three of his four seasons at Atlee High School. He had a successful career at Atlee, three times earning all-region honors and twice making all-state.
Warren played quarterback in high school, far different from his current position at Penn State. A duel-threat, Warren threw for 1,149 yards and 14 touchdowns as a senior and also rushed for 677 yards and 10 scores that season.
ESPN rated Warren as a four-star recruit and Virginia’s No. 7 Class of 2020 player. Rivals and 247Sports had him as a three-star. He committed to Penn State the day before the Fourth of July in 2019.
2020: Warren played in two of Penn State’s nine games in a pandemic-shortened season, making his college debut against Iowa at Beaver Stadium Nov. 21.
2021: Warren, along with Theo Johnson and Brenton Strange, received playing time at tight end for Penn State.
Warren appeared in 11 of Penn State’s 13 games, catching five passes for 61 yards and scoring his first touchdown– a rushing score– against Auburn Sept. 18.
Warren later had his first touchdown catch against Michigan Nov. 13.
Where he stands: Coach James Franklin has been saying for a while now that Penn State’s tight ends group is among the best, if not the best, in the country.
Although the group has the potential to prove Franklin right, its collective production in 2021, for a lot of people, left a lot to be desired.
Warren’s touchdown run in the Auburn game and touchdown reception against Michigan showed a glimpse of what he can do for Penn State in 2022.
Warren looks to be the No. 3 tight end option behind Johnson and Strange, who are both on the John Mackey Award watch list, but his size and athleticism could be helpful in Penn State’s offense.
A quote about Warren: “Not enough people are talking about Tyler,” Theo Johnson said last September. “I think he’s probably the best-kept secret that we have on our team. He’s as capable as anybody we have in the tight end room.”
