Tanner
Koziol.
Tanner
Koziol.
Houston· 6'7"· 247 lb· 4.70s 40
R5 · #164 · Jacksonville Jaguars"Rangy in-line/move Y with rare catch radius and All-American production, but 4.70 speed and stiff hips make him a possession target and pass-pro projection at the next level."Pre-draft read
Aligns as an in-line Y and detached from the slot, winning with length. He snaps hands late and plucks outside his frame; high-point wins on hitches, seams, and back-shoulder throws are his signature. His route tree lives in the intermediate: option routes, sit-downs versus zone, seams up the middle, and a stop-and-turn on third down. Body positioning is his separator; he shields defenders with his back and boxes out safeties.
Feet get heavy at the top of stems and hips are late to flip, so he does not uncover with quickness in isolation. As a run blocker, he moves his feet on the move and mirrors on angles. However, his posture drifts high and his anchor gives against strong-side ends.
The Jacksonville Jaguars operate a spread-to-run system, blending West Coast passing concepts with zone-read and RPO elements, emphasizing versatile skill players.
Immediate TE2 capable of moving the chains and excelling in the red zone, with a ceiling as a reliable, high-volume TE1 in a play-action heavy offense.
A vertical-stretch offensive scheme that relies on tight ends to win regularly down the seam and create big plays with long speed.
Koziol's excellent catch radius and chain-moving ability make him a strong fit for a West Coast-style offense that prioritizes intermediate targets and red-zone effectiveness, despite his lack of elite long speed.
Tanner Koziol Regular Season Highlights | 2025 Big 12 Football
Game film cut-up of Tanner Koziol's Houston tape.
Tanner Koziol 2025 Houston Season Highlights
Game film cut-up of Tanner Koziol's Houston tape.
TE Tanner Koziol has 100-YARD Game for Houston | 2025 Big 12 Football
Game film cut-up of Tanner Koziol's Houston tape.
This prospect projects as a reliable chain-moving tight end with red-zone utility, offering a team a trustworthy target over the middle. His excellent catch radius and advanced feel for route running against various coverages make him a viable option for critical downs, even if he lacks explosive athletic traits. He is best suited for an offensive scheme that values tight end involvement in intermediate passing concepts and around the goal line.
He spent three seasons at Ball State, culminating in a 94-catch, 839-yard, eight-touchdown season in 2024, earning All-America honors. After transferring to Houston for his senior year, he maintained high production with 74 catches for 727 yards and six scores, demonstrating his ability to produce against Power Five competition. His performance against Oregon State (6-86-1) in a comeback victory underscored his potential in high-leverage situations.
Evaluators noted his 4.70 forty time and 1.63 ten-split as limitations to his long speed, along with concerns about hip flexibility in routes. Despite these flags, his reliable hands and catch radius suggested a Day 3 selection, projecting him as a mover-Y tight end with potential to develop into a backup or low-end TE1. He was drafted in the fifth round, 164th overall.
- 01
Catch radius and hands
33 3/4-inch arms and 9 3/4-inch hands allow him to pluck outside his frame; consistently high-points hitches and back-shoulder throws.
- 02
Chain-mover route feel
Reads leverage and settles into windows on option routes and dig variations; his consistent production across multiple seasons shows trust.
- 03
Red-zone weapon
24 career touchdowns, using his body to box out safeties; recognized as one of the best red-zone tight ends in his class.
- 04
Production against every level
Cleared 700 receiving yards in both the MAC (2024) and Big 12 (2025) with two different quarterbacks.
- 05
Scheme versatility
Comfortable in-line, wing, and detached-slot alignments; usable in 12 personnel and empty sets, fitting modern offenses.
- 01
Long speed cap
His 4.70 forty and 1.63 ten split confirm that he does not stretch the seam, allowing safeties to sit on intermediate routes.
- 02
Tight hips at the stem
Feet get heavy at the top of routes; struggles to uncover in isolation versus quick nickel defenders and safeties.
- 03
In-line anchor questions
Posture drifts high in on-ball blocks, and strong-side ends can knock him off the point of attack.
- 04
Level-of-competition split
His monster 2024 season occurred in the MAC; a very good but not dominant rate in the Big 12 represented a gap.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 4.70sp50
- Vertical
- 36.5inp50
- Broad jump
- 122inp50
- Three-cone
- —s
- Shuttle
- —s
- Bench
- —rep
| Yr | Team | G | Rec | Yds | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Ball State | 12 | 35 | 373 | 7 |
| 2023 | Ball State | 12 | 34 | 295 | 3 |
| 2024 | Ball State | 12 | 94 | 839 | 8 |
| 2025 | Houston | 13 | 74 | 727 | 6 |
| Career | — | 49 | 237 | 2234 | 24 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
- Conner WeigmanQB35%
- Amare ThomasWR16%
- Stephon Johnson Jr.WR13%
#3 of 12 tracked contributors · Produced well above his snap share · Offense explosiveness 1.22 (p40) · CFBD — usage x PPA per tracked player
Long-limbed move-Y and red-zone piece who backed up starters and cashed in on scheme-specific looks.
Big-frame Y who won with route feel and hands more than juice and carved out a starter role early.
Big-body possession TE who bounced between practice squad and TE3 role — the outcome if the blocking never comes.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context: Koziol was a lightly recruited three-star from Bloomingdale, Ill., who committed to Ball State and started immediately as a true freshman (35-373-7 in 2022). A quiet 2023 (34-295-3) preceded the 2024 explosion — 94 catches, 839 yards and eight touchdowns, second-team AP All-American at the FBS level as a MAC tight end. Rather than declare, he transferred to Houston for a fifth season, faced Big 12 defenses week after week and still cleared 700 yards on 74 grabs. Evaluators loved the size, hands and route feel; they flagged 4.70 speed, tight hips and an anchor problem in-line.
NFL fit — Jacksonville: Jacksonville took him at 164 to add a big-body Y behind Brenton Strange and Johnny Mundt. Fit makes sense: the offensive approach leans on 12 personnel and boot game, and Koziol's hands, catch radius and option-route feel give the Jaguars a red-zone and third-down piece Trevor Lawrence has lacked in the middle of the field. Year-one path is TE3, jumbo-set snaps and short-yardage. If he adds anchor at the point of attack, he can play into a two-TE rotation by year two.
Retrospective: The evaluation on Koziol was straightforward and Jacksonville treated it that way. He is not a Kincaid-style movement TE — the 4.70 and stiff hips are real caps — but the production against MAC and Big 12 corners with two different quarterbacks, plus the arm length and hands, made him a defensible Day 3 bet at a position where size and reliability age well. Fifth-round mover-Y with backup-to-TE2 upside is the honest read.