Penn State Football: Mike Gesicki provides the muscle to the Nittany Lions air-it-out approach
Penn State football and OC Joe Moorhead aired it out in 2016. But the team has a mid range option in senior tight end Mike Gesicki as well.
The 2016 Penn State football season featured a lot of long balls from quarterback Trace McSorley. It’s obvious to any Penn State fan this team can score quickly. Nevertheless, they still have to build most drives through the short to mid range passing game. Tight end Mike Gesicki is one of the key targets in that aspect of the passing game.
Gesicki has a physical frame at 6-foot-6, 252-pounds. His size puts him in a position to make every type of play for Penn State football. Whether it be bodying two defenders for a touchdown against Michigan State or catching a ball one-handed against Temple, he’s an elite tight end.
Although Gesicki is versatile, it’s his short to medium range catches that separate him from the other receivers in this offense. With his frame and power, he provides a big target for McSorley to dump the ball to.
Gesicki fulfilled his responsibility of being the mid range target. He can go over the middle, make catches in traffic and bowl over defenders for extra yards.
This past season Gesicki produced well catching 48 passes for 679 yards and five touchdowns. He’s not just the team’s check down option either. He’s the leading returning receiver for the Nittany Lions.
Furthermore, he’s a clutch performer. When he’s called upon to make plays downfield, he comes up big. For instance, in the Rose Bowl, he out leaped above two USC defenders in the end zone to snag a key 11-yard touchdown.
Gesicki’s chemistry with McSorley will grow in year two. Although the quarterback needs a great running back and wide receivers, a strong quarterback-tight end duo is vastly important to a young QBs development.
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The senior tight end’s breakout season came after two years of catching just 24 passes for 239 yards and one touchdown. Despite two average seasons, Gesicki made a quantum jump in his game, and it’s likely he’ll see an even better season in 2017.