Former Penn State tight end Brenton Strange has been selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Nittany Sports Now caught up with Strange at this year’s Blue-White Game.
“They’re going to be getting a versatile beast in their offense,” Strange said. “A leader. Just someone who comes in every single day works hard, makes the team better.”
Strange was Penn State’s No. 1 tight end in 2022 and quickly emerged as one of quarterback Sean Clifford’s most reliable targets.
Coming into last season, Penn State’s tight ends room was thought to be an ensemble cast without a leading man.
Strange, Theo Johnson and Tyler Warren all showed flashes of brilliance before last season, and although Johnson and Warren had their moments in 2022, Strange emerged as the leading man for Penn State.
Strange finished the year third on Penn State in receiving yards (362), third in catches (32) and first in touchdowns (5). Those stats don’t consider the impact Strange made blocking, either. In Strange’s last game at Penn State, the Rose Bowl against Utah in January, Strange made a critical block that helped create Nick Singleton’s 87-yard touchdown run. Penn State ended up winning the game to finish 11-2.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.NFL draft guru Todd McShay had high praise for Strange last month, tweeting that he was “one of the least talked about and most underrated players in the draft.
“Combine numbers were pedestrian,” McShay wrote, “but his tape is impressive. Despite a loaded TE class, you’ll hear his name called Night 2 of the NFL Draft.”
At the NFL combine, Strange ran a 4.70 40-yard dash, a 1.57 10-yard splits, a 10-4 inch broad jump, a 36-inch vertical, a 4.46 20-yard shuffle, and 23 reps on the bench press.
Strange is the second Penn State player to go in this year’s draft, joining Joey Porter Jr, who went to the Pittsburgh Steelers with the first pick of the second round.
