Led by coach Jedd Fisch and offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll, Washington’s coaching staff places plenty of emphasis on the tight end position. Unfortunately, this was a spot that was left barren following the departure of Kalen DeBoer.
The team has a stopgap veteran starter in Quentin Moore along with some high-upside young talent that may factor into the position. However, this has left a void that Fisch, Carroll, and tight ends coach Jordan Paopao are attempting to fill through the 2025 class.
The Huskies are already aggressively targeting four-star Vander Ploog and will now bring Baron Naone, another talented player in for an official visit as they look to turn the tight end position from a weakness to a strength.
Both Ploog and Naone could shine in Fisch’s offense with Demond Williams under center in the future.
Naone is a blast to watch on the field. Despite being listed at tight end, he is quite productive as a defensive end and shows excellent explosiveness and get-off that makes him a star on offense as well. He’s a fluid mover who can beat linebackers who attempt to carry him up the seam.
Playing primarily as an inline tight end is a valuable skill that many high schoolers have little experience with. For Naone, he is well-versed in the area and shows excellent effort as a blocker. The strength he carries on his underdeveloped frame will only continue to improve but he is already able to bury defenders when he gets the chance.
Though Naone may never really flex out into the slot or to the outside due to a lack of long speed, this doesn’t mean he can’t be extremely productive in a more traditional role.
After the catch is also not somewhere that Naone can cause damage, but this may change as he adds more mass to his frame, allowing him to run more defenders over when he gets into the open field. Continuing to develop his catch technique will be important as well as he is forced to make plays outside of his frame or in contested situations more often.
The Huskies are still searching for the future answers at the tight end position and the thought of a future pairing of Ploog and Naone is worth salivating over. Ploog could fill a similar role to Devin Culp last season and Naone could adopt a Jack Westover/Cade Otton role.
Though it likely won’t work out this way, it should illustrate the type of player that either could be for the Huskies.