It’s been musical chairs in the Penn State tight end room this offseason, and the music apparently hasn’t stopped yet. Less than an hour after Matt Campbell made the Nittany Lions’ first addition of the offseason, landing a commitment from former Iowa State tight end Benjamin Brahmer, 2025 four-star tight end Andrew Olesh unexpectedly entered his name into the portal.
Olesh was a massive get for James Franklin in the 2025 class, flipping him away from Michigan on signing day last December. The Center Valley, PA native was the No. 3 tight end in the country and a top 60 overall recruit according to 247Sports Composite. Now, after redshirting and not playing a single snap for the Nittany Lions in 2025, Olesh is back on the open market.
Olesh will have all four years of eligibility remaining and joins 2024 Penn State five-star tight end Luke Reynolds in the portal.
BREAKING: Penn State true freshman TE Andrew Olesh is entering the @TransferPortal, he tells @On3Sports
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 3, 2026
The 6’5 236 TE was ranked as a Five-Star Recruit in the 2025 On300 (No. 1 TE)
He’ll have 4 years of eligibility left https://t.co/RlUbB6Fk7q pic.twitter.com/OuFugFEiUp
Andrew Olesh enters the transfer portal after Benjamin Brahmer addition
Under Franklin and now former tight end coach Ty Howle, who followed Franklin to Virginia Tech, the Nittany Lions became a tight end factory, sending Mike Gesicki, Pat Freiermuth, Brenton Strange, Theo Johnson, and Tyler Warren to the NFL. Reynolds and Olesh were expected to be next in that lineage, but that plan has changed, as just about everything in Happy Valley has this year.
Campbell did, however, manage to retain rising redshirt junior Andrew Rappleyea, who caught 20 passes this past season. Reynolds was originally intended to redshirt his freshman season until an injury to Rappleyea, a 2023 four-star, suffered a season-ending injury leading up to the 2024 campaign. Rappleyea began the 2025 season behind Reynolds on the depth chart, but began to usurp him down the stretch of the season.
With Brahmer, the top tight end in the transfer portal according to Saturday Blitz’s rankings, and Rappleyea on the roster, the Nittany Lions will have one of the country’s premier tight end duos. However, Campbell and general manager Derek Hoodjer may need to consider adding another tight end to the roster with Olesh’s departure.
If they want to, they’ll have a good option in former Iowa State tight end Gabe Burkle. The 6-foot-6 junior has one season of eligibility remaining after catching 26 passes for 302 yards for the Cyclones last year.
Saturday Blitz TE Transfer Portal Rankings
With Reynolds and Olesh in the portal and Khalil Dinkins out of eligibility and heading to the NFL, Penn State has Brahmer, Rappleyea, redshirt sophomore Finn Furmanek, freshman Brian Kortovich, and freshman Matt Henderson at tight end.