Jonathan Smith says Jack Velling has chance to be one of nation's best tight ends

It's been a minute since Michigan State football last had an elite tight end, but that's changing under Jonathan Smith.

The new coaching staff is bringing Jack Velling over from Oregon State after he burst onto the scene with the Beavers in 2022 with 281 yards and three touchdowns. He only added to his numbers in 2023 as a sophomore with 29 catches for 438 yards and eight touchdowns, making him one of the most productive tight ends in the country.

Brian Wozniak has a great track record of developing tight ends and now he's going to put another guy in the NFL as long as he lives up to his potential.

Jonathan Smith knows that he has a special player at tight end this season and he had high praise for the junior recently.

"He's got a chance to be one of the best tight ends in the country."

It's hard to argue that point by Smith because he already proved that he can be one of the best in the Pac-12 and with Aidan Chiles throwing him the ball and the fact that he's the clear No. 1 tight end in East Lansing shows that his numbers are likely to jump in 2024.

Velling is already one of the leaders of the team, too, as evidenced by the fact that Smith chose him to be one of the Spartans' three representatives at Big Ten Media Days.

The excitement for Velling should be sky-high because he's going to be the best tight end to grace the program since Josiah Price and the NFL is in his future.

Maybe he'll push for the All-Big Ten first team this season, too.