Latest / Scouting the League / 2027 Draft Scouting - Luke Reynolds - Virginia Tech TE
Transcript
- Rodrik David @RightStepAdv: Hey everybody, it's Tuesday and welcome to Scouting the League as we make our way back into the 2027 draft countdown. The Colts made a shakeup, and Ed Dodds, who is a friend of the program, gets to play out GM for the rest of this year. Head back to the archives if you want to know a little bit more about Ed Dodds, who's going to be running that ship, maybe making some moves. Perhaps auditioning for that full-time GM job was a great episode. Head back and listen to that one. But today it's all about the 2027 NFL draft by request today. Thank you to Holy Spider 9206. Perhaps a Richmond fan there. We get to dive into tight end Luke Reynolds of Virginia Tech by way of Penn State. Does he measure up to Tredez Green? Brett Norfleet or any of the other tight ends in this year's class, we will see. Stick around for that one. Make sure you head over, like, subscribe, and share this podcast wherever you're listening and watching. 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And last but not least, The most comfortable, the insoles that you need in every shoe over at blue maca.com. Use code Scouting20 at checkout to let them knew we sent you. Check the show notes for a link to that, blue maca.com. So another shout out to Holy Spider 9206 for the request. You two can get your requests in. Luke Reynolds is that guy. Who is he today? Let's take a look at his profile here. A four to five star tight end prospect, depending on where you're reading at, out of Cheshire Academy and Westford Mass, a five-time varsity letter winner in football. There, a unique spot where he could learn, earn those five varsity letters, was the number one tight end recruit and number 29 overall by 24/7, was the number 189 overall player by ESPN. He was also a three-year letter winner in basketball, a sport carry and traits that carry over from basketball that scouts are always gonna want to keep an eye on. Enrolled at Penn State, where he played in 16 games with store four starts as a true freshman, a seven-game starter with 13 played in 2025. In those two years at Penn State, 35 receptions for 368 yards and one touchdown. Followed Coach Franklin on down to Virginia Tech, where he has seven starts in seven games this year. Already caught 43 balls for 449 yards, four touchdowns, listed at 6'4, 250 with a clean, even frame that looks like it may still fill out just a little bit. When we are talking about tight end, have to decide if this guy is a an F, a Y, maybe both. Is he perhaps an H? We'll talk a little bit about that H roll, speaking to our stack board. Have to consider inline blocking. Lots of those O line traits are gonna come in and you have to consider receiving. Again, receiver traits. How does he fit into an offense? How do we gonna wanna use that guy? So let's go ahead and get to some tape and see what this guy brings to the table. So we are gonna go ahead and throw on his receiving plays again, his catches this year. When we're talking tight end again, is this guy a Y and F? Again, maybe not gonna see it, but as you throw on your full game tape, this is a guy that certainly has the size to be a Y. Love the mentality that also he brings. Coaches and scouts are gonna love this. Is a high effort, high motor blocker who gets after it both inside and on the edge. I think he's still gaining strength. That narrow slider frame looks like he is still going to fill out. That's going to allow him to be stronger at the point, but he is going to block with good position, good initial angles. He's going to strain to sustain. So I think you can very well say this guy has good ability as a Y. I think this is a a Y player with even more upside than that. This could become a very good inline blocker, but probably more of a limited Y in year one that's going to grow. The mentality's there. He's got what you want between the ears is when it comes to blocking. He's going to get after you, which is always going to give you a a chance. Again, the angles, the the the feet, the hips, everything is working. So again, he's going to be a good wide player eventually. As we start talking the past game again, tight ends have to be productive. Tight ends have always been productive in a large part of James Franklin's team. No different with this guy. Very good production, the number one. tight end of the country when it comes to catches for tight ends. He is up there on the list. So the production's already there. He's a good athlete. Some very good flashes. I think overall I'm going to stay with good though. Good releases. Good body control. This guy can bend. He can get in and out of breaks. Good hands. I would love to see him play a little bit more extended, snatch the ball in a few spots where I thought he was close, maybe right off the off the fingertips. I just want to see more. I think he can do it. But again, you always go back to that film. You want to be able to show when you're fighting for a guy in the draft room. We've put it on tape. Maybe you've seen it at practice. Maybe you've seen it when we go back a couple years to his Penn State time. You want to see that ability to extend, play above the rim, play in contact with big long arms exp extended. I think he's got good ability to separate. I think the one spot where I have a question is his football intelligence when intelligence when it comes to reading coverage. sitting down. I think there's times in zone where he overruns a blank spot in a zone and basically runs into coverage, or he ends up missing that window where the quarterback is looking to throw it. I think that can come. He can learn, learn to read coverage as he continues to grow in his game. But I think that is the one spot where teams, scouts, coaches are really gonna drill him. What are you reading? Can you read on the fly that's going to be a huge One of the things that has separated Travis Kelsey over a lot of tight ends, him and Patrick Mahomes' ability to be on the same page, to find the windows, be able to throw away from coverage. If this player can do it, if Luke Reynolds can do that, he is certainly going to player that is just going to find even more production on the field. That's why I think this is a great player that is going to be able to function as both a Y and an F. I think there is going to be some upside for this player. So let's go ahead and jump to the dra stack board to talk about where we like him. So as we look at the stack board again, I certainly think there's going to be some round two upside for this player. I'm not sure if I quite see dynamic enough round one trades, but I think for me right now, I'm gonna put a three-o grade on this guy. He is a true junior that has a lot of good to his game. This guy could certainly be a two-o type guy by the time the draft process comes, but I'm gonna start with a three-o. Solid starter, guy that you're going to love, that you're gonna win with. This guy can be a matchup issue for some players, but not every player. You are going to be able to match him up with some safety, some linebackers, but this is a guy that you like and win with on your roster. Three downs, reliable, tough, gritty, straining player who at the end of the day, you have this guy as your number one tight end on your roster. You're probably gonna be in pretty good shape. You can go find more of that roll Y, that roll left. Pair at three tight ends on your roster, you're gonna be in great shape. When we when we start talking about him compared to the stack board, and know that was that was holy one of Holy Spiders question. How does he stack up against a Trey Dez Green who is that number one tight end? Again, Trey Dez has some special traits, some of those excellent traits when it comes to his receiving ability. He's a bit a little bit longer, a little bit bigger. I think he is a little bit more twitchy, a little bit higher end athlete, which allows him to be even more of a matchup nightmare. Not as consistent a blocker as Luke Reynolds. He strains in the same way, but because he is taller, he gets over his toes, get out of position a little bit more. But again, that pass game upside is what separates Trey Dez Green for me on this board. When we get down to Terrence Carter, Brett Norfleet, Terrence Carter's a true H. So there's gonna be a lot of teams who have him even lower because of he's he he is a true H. He is a sufficient to good. Why sufficient to good F, sufficient and then sufficient to good fullback. And that's where the value for Terrence Carter is. If you're an offense that doesn't really use a fullback, this guy's going to be more of a fourth to fifth round pick, which is where I have him fourth round for for Terrence Carter. And then Brett Norfley, underachiever for me. Love the size, love the frame, love the upside. But his low motor is what really moves him down for me. He's gonna have to figure that out. So again, that's where I like Luke Reynolds above these guys, some other good ones in Kamari Anderson, Eli Finley, more role players as we get down the board. There's other ones in the country I haven't done, but that is where I like Luke Reynolds. I have a third round grade on him. I think there is certainly some upside. Again, a good pre-draft process, good testing, and the right person. I could certainly see this player being in ground two conversations. But Holy Spider ninety two six, what do you think? Not just Holy Spider, let me know. Anyone out there, where do you think Luke Reynolds should be? Should he go back to school? I'm sure Virginia Tech would love to have him back. I don't know though, and this year's classes could be a player with the production. Get it while the getting's good type of situation. So we'll we'll see where Luke Reynolds ends up. But Let me know where I'm right, where I'm wrong, and of course, request your future players, whether it's at Right Step ADV over on Twitter or right here in the notes, wherever you're listening and watching. We are halfway through, and scouts are starting to draw ever closer to their fall schedules being done. Agents, make sure you head over, get those requests in at right stepscouting.com as we get through the fall season. If it's a program, if somebody has a portal consideration, whoever it is, together, you know we're gonna keep scouting.