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BYU tight end Carsen Ryan runs after a catch during spring practice on March 15 at the indoor practice facility. Ryan transferred from Utah to BYU in the offseason. | Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo
BYU is back in the business of using and producing tight ends in its offense and one of the best to ever play in Provo thinks it’s about time.
“I think it will be awesome. To me, the most important part (to an offense) is to have a variety of ways you can attack the defense,” former Cougar Jonny Harline told the “Y’s Guys” podcast this week. “A tight end is a great pressure release for the quarterback. You have a large target that is generally close to you. To me, it always seemed like an easy throw and gives a safety (outlet) to the quarterback.”
Harline savored his seasons as John Beck’s favorite target. He peaked his senior year (2006) with 58 receptions for 935 yards and 12 touchdowns. Last year, even as BYU rolled to an 11-2 record and No. 13 national ranking, their three tight ends combined for 31 catches and four touchdowns.
In a busy offseason, Kalani Sitake went to work to fix that. Most notably, the Cougars signed former Ute Carsen Ryan from the transfer portal. After a productive spring, Ryan is expected to carry the bulk of the load at tight end this fall.
Then Monday happened.
When 6-foot-6, 238-pound Brock Harris picked up the BYU baseball cap during his national announcement, he did more than leave the other hats belonging to Georgia, Michigan and Oregon on the table — he made history.
Ranked No. 33 on ESPN’s Top 300 for the 2026 recruiting class and the No. 2 overall tight end by 247sports.com, Harris became BYU’s third highest-rated commit in the modern history of recruiting rankings and the top tight end.
Last week, the Cougars picked up a commitment from another highly touted tight end in Colorado. Ty Goettsche, a 6-7, 225-pound product, chose BYU over offers from Penn State, Auburn and Florida.
Both players will serve church missions after high school and while they won’t report to BYU until 2028, Harline applauds the renewed focus on his former and critical position.
High on Ryan
Harline has never met Carsen Ryan, but he shares a connection through Orem High, where he attended school with Ryan’s mom, Danielle. Her father, Steve, was Harline’s athletic director.
The Tigers all-state football and basketball star and future BYU Hall of Famer started following Ryan’s career at the prodding of a friend. “I remember him telling me, ‘Hey, this kid, Danielle’s son, he is an awesome player, and a lot of people are comparing him to you,‘” Harline said. “I’ve followed him as he’s gone to UCLA and Utah. I pumped for him to come (to BYU).”
Ryan is 6-4 and 252 pounds. In his prime, Harline was 6-4 and 238.
“Playing physical and getting into the secondary, that’s a big part of it,” Harline said about what Ryan can do for the offense. “The more each person produces helps the other players. The more productive your offense is, the more productive every individual on that offense is going to be.”
Ryan appeared in 12 games at Utah last season, including five starts. He caught 10 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown.
Making music
Prior to his Orem graduation, Harline was pressed by a writing assignment to declare what he wanted to be when he grew up.
“I want to play in the NBA, the NFL or be a rockstar,” he wrote. “I had the NFL, a little bit, but I love playing (music). Since I finished football, I’ve consistently played in bands.”
Harline is the lead guitarist for his group Tigerfrog. They produced one album that is available on Spotify and have a second one ready to record. He started music lessons at age 7 with the piano.
“I get on my kids now to ‘do your half hour of practice.’ That’s what I did, every day,” Harline said. “I like music overall. Once I got into junior high, I started with the drums and the guitar because it’s rock ‘n’ roll. It’s still a big part of my life.”
The best part about music for Harline is that, unlike football, he can still play it — and it never hits back.
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.
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