During a rare moment of free time for the tight end who does it all, Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin Jr. will occasionally stream on Twitch. While streaming earlier this year, Fannin received a question about Penn State’s do-it-all tight end Tyler Warren: “Does he snap?”
Nobody is better equipped to answer that question than Fannin, because he’s the only the only other tight end in the country asked to do as much from down to down for his team.
You could even argue he does more.
Take Bowling Green’s most recent game, a 41-26 win over Toledo, for example. Fannin played 57 offensive snaps. Fifteen of those came as an outside receiver, 13 occurred in the slot, 21 were attached to the line of scrimmage as an in-line tight end, seven were in the backfield and Fannin even took a snap as a wildcat quarterback, per Pro Football Focus.
Stats would suggest it was an off game by Fannin’s lofty standards (six catches, 74 yards, one TD; 12 yards rushing), but Bowling Green pulled the road upset over the defending MAC runner up in large part because of the stress Fannin creates on an opposing defense.
“He’s a guy that can do it all,” Bowling Green tight ends coach Alex Bayer told CBS Sports. “The mismatches he can create in different spots … he’s going to be the focal guy. When you have a guy like that, we’ll keep putting him in spots to throw the ball.
“I don’t know how it took eight weeks for teams to start doubling him and pressing him at the line of scrimmage.”
Fannin ranks fourth nationally with 947 yards on 66 catches. He averages more yards per game than superstar wide receivers Tetairoa McMillan (Arizona), Xavier Restrepo (Miami) and Travis Hunter (Colorado).
History is the only real context for Fannin’s production as a tight end. Texas Tech‘s Jace Amaro set the FBS single-season record in 2013 for both receiving yards (1,352) and yards per game (104) for a tight end.
Fannin is on pace to break both marks by the end of the regular season — 118 yards per game & 1,420 yards — and is also in striking distance of Rice tight end James Casey for the single-season receptions record by a tight end (111).
While bonkers numbers have mostly come against MAC competition, playoff contenders have been shredded by Fannin, too. He recorded 11 catches for 137 yards and touchdown against Penn State. The next week, he posted eight catches for 145 yards a touchdown against Texas A&M.
Fannin’s PFF grade for the season (96.2) is higher than anything Brock Bowers (92.1) or Kyle Pitts (96) ever posted, and they’re the modern gold standard for tight end production.
Everyone knows who Bowling Green’s best player is; they’ve just been unable to stop him.
“Obviously he’s the best player,” Bayer said. “We just find ways to put the ball in our best player’s hands.”
There was a time not long ago that Fannin looked like he wouldn’t play college football at all.
A high school safety and wide receiver, Fannin was a zero-star recruit with only a single FBS offer coming out of McKinley High School in Canton, Ohio. Fannin’s junior season aligned with the COVID-19 pandemic and, as Fannin puts it, “I never did any schoolwork (that year).” His coaches had been fired the previous season, which meant all his college recruiting contacts walked out the door. Fannin’s grades and collegiate stock tanked.
That changed when he had a reality check conversation with one of his new coaches ahead of his senior year. His grades rebounded, and he did enough academically to earn a late offer from Bowling Green.
The Falcons had a pitch for the 210-pound safety: Play tight end.
“When I first thought about it, I was like, ‘Tight end?’ I thought I’d be too small for it,” Fannin said. “But I was down to play the position. I grew up playing offense. I loved playing offense. I was ready to play.”
Fannin impressed right away. He caught 19 passes for 218 yards as a true freshman. That jumped to 44 for 623 as a sophomore last year, a challenging season for Fannin who lost his sister, Haria Wise, at age 20 to a battle with leukemia.
Said Fannin of his sister, who he honored last season by pointing to sky following a touchdown a few days after her death: “How she inspires me is different in a way. When I’m tired in games it’s,’ What do I have to be tired for? There are people who have it way worse.’ That helps motivate me and keep me going.”
Bayer had a simple but complicated ask of Fannin this offseason: Work to better understand the Xs and Os and the ideas behind how plays are executed.
Fannin is often used as an example at Bowling Green of how to run a route. Ask him to run 20 yards, he’ll do exactly that. But given the down-to-down nature of his role, an elevated understanding of the entire offensive picture could give him an additional edge.
“He was always in the right place and doing the right thing,” Bayer said. “But there were times he couldn’t voice a certain technique or coverage.”
That’s changed for the now 6-foot-4, 235-pound Fannin.
Bowling Green is willing to play him more places — he took 45 snaps as an outside receiver last year compared to 78 already this season — because he’s displayed an ability to digest additional information. In fact, Bayer will usually come to Fannin once or twice a week with a new route or concept they’re asking him to learn. Fannin makes Bayer laugh because it often comes with a look of, ‘I’m running this now?'”
That happened last week when Fannin — again, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound human — was asked to run a whip-dagger route, which is basically a 16-yard dig in the Falcons’ offense. That’s something receivers do with their ability to change direction in an instant. Fannin had never run that at Bowling Green. The ball didn’t go his way on the play, instead going to a post route, but he executed it perfectly.
It all goes back to how Fannin thinks about route running.
“Sometimes I like to think that I’m a bigger receiver,” Fannin said.
Bayer played tight end for Bowling Green once upon a time. He earned all-MAC honors as a senior in 2013 and spent two years in the NFL. Those program records that Fannin keeps smashing? Many of them belong to his position coach.
The NFL is watching. Bayer met with a scout as soon as he finished talking with CBS Sports. Bayer knows Fannin will be considered undersized by some in the NFL. He’s a move tight end on the next level. But Bayer noted Fannin is Bowling Green’s best blocker at the position — he’s earned a 71.2 PFF run block grade on the year — and also reflects how the position has evolved.
“I tell them, ‘You’re crazy if you think he’s (a tweener),” Bayer said. “He’s going to be a very fun prospect. If he goes to the NFL is after this year, I don’t know what Bowling Green history is as far as the highest draft pick, I’m sure he’ll be very high up.”
The answer is the third round, at least across the last 50 seasons.
It remains to be seen whether Fannin goes that high. He’s not even a lock to win the Mackey Award, which is given annually to the nation’s top tight end, because of Warren’s presence; Warren has 606 yards through eight games and an 86.6 PFF grade.
But Fannin does know the one thing left on his offensive bingo card this year.
“I guess center,” Fannin said with a laugh.
