The Texas A&M football team is no stranger to strong tight end play. Some recent memorable names who played their football in College Station are Jace Sternberger and Martellus Bennett. Because of this, it should be no surprise that the Aggies have one of the best tight ends in the country this season.
Jalen Wydermyer is that tight end, leading the Texas A&M football team in receiving yards in 2021.
As of Tuesday, it is announced that Wydermyer is a finalist for the Mackey Award, given to the nation’s top tight end. Wydermyer was also a finalist for the award last season, falling just short in 2020.
Does Texas A&M football’s Jalen Wydermyer have a real chance to win the Mackey Award?
Before I even discuss his chances of winning the award, it’s important to note that Jalen Wydermyer will already go down as the greatest tight end in Aggie history. In just three seasons, he accumulated 114 receptions, 1,444 receiving yards, and 16 touchdowns. All of those numbers are school records at his position.
But are his Mackey Award chances real?
In short, yes — but it should be important to remain skeptical. Last season, Wydermyer was also an award finalist with better per-game statistics and fell short to Florida’s Kyle Pitts. While there isn’t a dominant tight end like Pitts this year, Wydermyer has suffered at the hands of a worse passing offense.
Still, on the year, Wydermyer has accumulated 491 yards and four touchdowns, numbers that are among the best tight ends in the country. If he wins the award, it’ll be a result of him being the sole piece of consistency on this Aggie offense throughout the year.
Wydermyer can boost his argument with a strong game at LSU to close out the year for A&M. A strong finish may be the difference between winning the award and becoming a back-to-back runner-up.