One Former Five-Star Recruit Who's Ready To Break Out for Virginia Tech

The play that hinted at what Luke Reynolds could be didn't come on a route. It came on a fake punt.

It was fourth-and-1, late in the fourth quarter at Minnesota on Nov. 23, 2024. Reynolds, a true freshman tight end, took the snap and ripped off a 32-yard run to help seal a 26-25 Penn State win. It was the kind of play that makes a fan base remember a recruiting ranking. Reynolds was a five-star by 247Sports out of Cheshire Academy in Connecticut, the No. 29 overall recruit and the top tight end in the 2024 class. He was, by all metrics, a marquee recruit with oozing potential.

He just couldn't get on the field at first.

That happens when you land behind John Mackey Award winner Tyler Warren, a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Reynolds spent his first season as the No. 3 tight end and still flashed, finishing with nine catches for 111 yards and a touchdown, a 24-yarder against Purdue on Nov. 16. As a sophomore, he grew into a bigger role with Warren's departure and caught 26 passes for 257 yards, though he only reached the end zone once in his time in Happy Valley and the tight ends were less utilized in 2025. Penn State leaned on the run, with Kayton Allen (1,303 yards, 15 touchdowns) and Nick Singleton combining for over 1,850 yards and totaling 28 scores.

Now, Reynolds is in Blacksburg, and the ceiling looks higher.

Reynolds did not pick Virginia Tech at random. First-year Virginia Tech coach James Franklin recruited him to Penn State, and offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Ty Howle was the reason he signed there. When Reynolds hit the portal, his profile carried a "do not contact" tag. He already knew where he was going.

The fit is the point. Howle's offense leans on the tight end the way Franklin's Penn State teams did, and at 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, Reynolds can line up inline or in the slot depending on the look.

Reynolds played quarterback into his junior year of high school before moving to tight end full time, and he tested like a skill player, clocking a 4.5 in the 40-yard dash with a 38-inch vertical. He isn't walking into an empty room, either. He joins Benji Gosnell, Harrison Saint Germain and Ja'Ricous Hairston, plus fellow Penn State transfer Matt Henderson. Reynolds is the highest-rated recruit of the bunch.

Spring backed it up. Reynolds led all players in the spring game with five catches for 69 yards and looked like quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer's favorite target.

Defensive coordinator Brent Pry, the former Virginia Tech head coach now running the defense, came away impressed. Pry called Reynolds "a pretty special guy" and said he hadn't realized the tight end had that kind of speed at his size until he saw it up close. Reynolds has two years of eligibility left under the old rules, but under the new age-based NCAA eligibility model, he could stand to receive a third depending on age. He spent the first chapter of his career waiting his turn. In Howle's offense, with the coaches who believed in him from the start, the wait is over.

Add us as a preferred source on Google