Tight end Colston Loveland is a small-town guy who has the potential to make a large impact wherever he lands in April's NFL Draft.
Growing up on a farm in Gooding, ID, (population 3,802 as of 2023) helped Loveland absorb the meaning of teamwork before he ever decamped for Ann Arbor, MI, to play for the Wolverines. There were chores, of course. Most forgettable, some memorable.
"I don't know if I necessarily liked them," he said to a chorus of laughing reporters at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis on Thursday. "One memory I have is branding calves. One person would flank them, hold them on the head. One would hold the back legs. And we'd do it every spring for my Uncle Jay. Wake up in the morning and go do that and miss a bit of school. So that was always a good time."
The Jets, at present, own the No. 7 overall selection in the draft (April 24-26 in Green Bay) and have a total of eight picks. Veteran TE Tyler Conklin could be a free agent, which would leave the Green & White with opportunities at a position that is important in the pass and run game. Jeremy Ruckert is entering his third season while Zach Kuntz and UFA Kenny Yeboah have seen limited action on offense.
Among the tight ends in the draft, most pundits have Tyler Warren (Penn State) rated No. 1, followed by Loveland, Gunnar Helm (Texas) and then Elijah Arroyo (Miami).
Loveland (6-5, 245), who met with the Jets on Thursday, is a two-time All Big Ten selection who this past season set the Michigan single-season record for receptions (56) by a tight end, even though he missed time with a shoulder injury. In 10 games (7 starts) he totaled 582 yards and 5 touchdowns, accounting for 35 percent of the team's receiving output and nearly half (5 of 12) of the Wolverine's receiving touchdowns.
In Michigan's Week 3 game against Arkansas State, Loveland before halftime sustained what appeared to be a shoulder injury. He returned to the game after a trip to the locker room but landed on the same shoulder on the first drive of the second half.
He only missed one game, returning to make 37 catches for 395 yards and 3 TDs in seven games, including a 112-yard effort against Oregon and an 83-yard performance at Illinois.
"I wanted to be a part of the team and help the team win," he said. "And it hurt I missed that one game. But no, there was never a thought about sitting out. I was gonna play through no matter what."
He added: "I feel like that was a big, a big thing for me this year, and just kind of that leadership step up this year. I think I learned a lot, and I think I'm just blessed to go through that and kind of know how to handle that. This is the first kind of injury I've ever had."
Loveland, playing as a junior last season, did have surgery on the shoulder on Jan. 29, and according to Adam Schefter of ESPN, his orthopedic surgeon said he sustained a Type V AC joint dislocation, which normally takes 4-to-6 months to recover. That puts him on a timeline to be available for training camp, wherever he might land.
In terms of his ability on the field projecting to the NFL, Loveland has good hands, is a threat as a tall, long pass catcher either on the line or in an X formation. He might still need some work to deal with opposing defensive monsters in the run game. According to Lance Zuerlein of NFL.com, Loveland plays the game "like a big wideout," which was his position in high school.
"I would say I'm one of the best route runners in this draft, I truly believe that," he said. "Think I got great hands. Obviously, I got a lot to work on throughout my whole game, but I feel like I'm pretty polished and just excited to keep getting better."
He added: "As far as my game, I think, like I've been saying, overall improved my whole game, but I think in the run game, just being a little more consistent and yards after catch, I think just slowing my tempo down, kind of seeing what's around me, knowing I'm athletic enough to make a move and make someone move."
Before he packed his bags in Idaho and headed for Michigan, Loveland, who will turn 21 on April 4, said he was confronted with a choice: sports (football and basketball, and was first-team All-State ) or the rodeo.
"Someday, maybe buy some land somewhere," he said. "Maybe have some cows. I don't know. We'll figure it out. But that's, that's down the road. I got into rodeo because of my cousins. I was loving it, but it's a lot. I mean, you got to get horses, trailers, saddles, you got to get the whole deal. And I was playing football, basketball all the time. And I did talk about it with my family, but I was like, 'I'm just going to play basketball, football, keep it at that.' "
So Loveland's home on the range will have to wait.
