With the departure of Devin Culp and Jack Westover, the Washington Huskies have a major void at tight end. Veterans Quentin Moore and Keleki Latu will look to take up the mantle with youngsters Decker DeGraaf and Ryan Otton behind them.
Though there is potential in the group, it hasn’t stopped the coaching staff from looking for a potential long-term starter.
Vander Ploog has been a major target for coach Jedd Fisch, position coach Jordan Paopao, and Washington’s coaching staff as it looks to address its needs. The 6-foot-6, 223-pound tight end has future star written all over him and could become a target for quarterback of the future Demond Williams.
Ploog is a prolific three-sport athlete, a dying breed with the proliferation of single sport focuses, which should serve his development well. His clear top sport is football, where he amassed over 1,100 yards receiving to go along with 12 touchdowns in a breakout junior season. Ploog rocketed up recruiting rankings in the process and has seen major interest from Arizona State, California, SMU, and Utah.
With the way the college and NFL games are moving, dynamic “move” or big slot tight ends have become all the rage and Ploog definitely fits into this archetype.
His game is somewhat reminiscent of former Utah Ute and now Buffalo Bills first-round pick Dalton Kincaid. For his high school team, Ploog plays all over the formation with some of his best reps coming on the outside as a true receiver, not something that all tight ends can do.
Big time athletes at the tight end position are always in demand and Ploog certainly fits that bill. He is a fluid and smooth mover who can escape smaller defenders who want to get their hands on him. He’s also able to move extremely well with the ball in his hands and accelerates well for such a large player.
There are only a few concerns with Ploog’s game at this point. His wingspan is underwhelming for such a large player, and he may not be able to catch outside of his frame consistently. It’s also possible that he just hasn’t developed this area of his game and has not needed to rely on it at his current level of competition. Getting better as a route runner will be key, but this is an area that most high school tight ends have yet to fully master.
Ploog is listed somewhere between 220 and 225 pounds so imagining his game at 240 or even 250 pounds is a scary proposition, assuming he can maintain his athleticism with the additional mass on his frame.
Adding strength along with additional weight will allow him to improve as a blocker where he has already shown solid technique and plenty of willingness to do the less glamorous parts of the tight position.
The Huskies may be desperate for a player of Ploog’s caliber at a position that head coach Jedd Fisch and offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll have shown they want to feature in their scheme. Securing Ploog to go along with Otton and DeGraaf for the future has the potential to be an elite tight end room.