Penn State’s Tyler Warren should make a big impact in the Fiesta Bowl

Penn State’s Tyler Warren is not only attracting attention for his stellar plays at tight end, but also for his ability to line up anywhere on the offense.

The former three-sport high school athlete has no problem slotting into multiple spots along the line of scrimmage and has played five other positions, including wide receiver, backfield, wildcat quarterback, center and fullback.

Warren will be among the key players to watch at State Farm Stadium Tuesday night in Penn State’s College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against Boise State.

One of Warren’s biggest plays this season came against USC in an overtime win in Week 6, when he lined up at center and was an eligible receiver in an unbalanced formation. He handed the ball to backup quarterback Beau Pribula, who sacked starting quarterback Drew Allar near the sideline. Allar then threw a strike to Warren, who made the contested catch in the end zone to cut USC’s 14-point lead to one possession in the third.

“I feel like a tight end in general, you’re usually going to do a little bit of everything as a position in itself,” Warren said. “I did a little more than what a typical tight end would do. I love doing that, and knowing that I’m doing something to help the offense… is something that I’m really proud of and what my goal is every week.

Warren has no problem doing whatever the coaches ask him to do during games. He credits playing basketball and baseball in high school as building blocks to his football career.

But what also helped him were the different positions he held growing up. Warren played center, fullback, running back and linebacker during his youth football days. He later played quarterback from middle school to high school, but described himself as a running back who occasionally threw the ball.

At 6-6, he moved to tight end his freshman season after his basketball tape showed promise.

First-year offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki pushed Warren’s versatility and injected creativity into Penn State’s game planning, mystifying defenses with crafty plays.

“It’s pretty impressive how creative we are on offense,” Allar said. “Obviously Coach K is a big part of it, but our entire offensive team has a creative hand on offense. It allows everyone to have a say, and that’s a big part of our success this year and why we’re playing so well.

Warren excelled at his primary position, leading the team with 1,095 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 92 receptions. He is Allar’s favorite target. The team’s No. 2 receiver, Harrison Wallace III, has just 43 catches and 686 yards this season.

All of his work earned Warren the John Mackey Award, given to the nation’s top tight end, and projected him as a first-round pick in the upcoming NFL draft.

“You have a chess piece to move around and use, it’s fun to train. Our imagination is our ceiling as a coaching staff,” Kotelnicki said. “The fact that it’s so easy for him to learn and do these things. …You don’t need to invest a lot of time with Tyler Warren.

“We can say, Hey, Ty, go up there and snap the ball. ALL RIGHT. He goes up there and slams the ball. Whereas some players, we never do that because we know you’ve invested a lot of time in getting them to do it right. He is so athletic and well-rounded that there is no need to spend a lot of time training.

The Nittany Lions used Warren’s throwing abilities against SMU, putting him at quarterback for a play in the third quarter, an incomplete pass to Nicholas Singleton.

Warren added 197 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns this season, ranking him fifth on the team.

Given Pribula’s abrupt departure, the Nittany Lions certainly appreciate Warren’s versatility heading into Tuesday’s game. Warren went 3-for-6 for 35 yards this season. His longest pass was a 17-yard touchdown to Singleton against Kent State in Week 3.

Unlike the other backup quarterbacks, Pribula had seen plenty of action with 275 passing yards and 242 rushing yards in 13 games.

But when the portal opened in early December, Pribula decided to transfer as Penn State prepared for the CFP first round against SMU. His announcement came a day before Allar announced he would return for his final season.

Against SMU, the Nittany Lions faced freshman quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer in the fourth quarter in the 38-10 victory.

“This is a challenge that has been going on for several years,” Nittany Lions coach James Franklin said. “It’s obviously become more difficult with the schedule and with the transfer portal windows and NIL. We must find solutions.

Franklin said he wants a commissioner to handle these issues for the benefit of all college football programs.

“Any time you have people making decisions and running college football, there is going to be a bias towards what’s best in their conference and that’s not in the best interest of football academics and student-athletes,” Franklin said.