High School

Cedar Rapids Prairie Grad Placed on Mackey Award Watch List

Iowa State’s Gabe Burkle named to list for top tight end award

Dana Becker

Cedar Rapids Prairie tight end Gabe Burkle (87) lines up during a Class 5A varsity football game against Iowa City West, Friday, Oct. 15, 2021, at John Wall Field in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids Prairie tight end Gabe Burkle (87) lines up during a Class 5A varsity football game against Iowa City West, Friday, Oct. 15, 2021, at John Wall Field in Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

Former Cedar Rapids Prairie High School standout Gabe Burkle has been named to the 2025 John Mackey Award watch list.

The honor goes to the top tight end annually in college football. 

Burkle, a redshirt junior, is coming off a season in which he played in all 14 games for the Cyclones, making eight starts. He recorded 26 receptions for 296 yards, with 24 of those catches coming over the final seven games of the season.

He had a key catch during the Pop Tarts Bowl when Iowa State defeated Miami, hauling in his first career touchdown. Burkle also had a key 26-yard reception on a halfback pass during a victory over Utah on the road, converting a third-and-1 during the game-winning drive.

Burkle played in two games as a freshman in 2022 before taking a redshirt, as he saw action in all 13 games in 2023 with two catches for nine yards.

Gabe Burkle earned all-state status as a senior in high school

While helping lead Cedar Rapids Prairie to the Class 5A state quarterfinals, Burkle was named to the first team by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association. He caught 23 passes for 324 yards with a touchdown as a senior.

Burkle also had offers from Kansas State, Michigan State and Indiana before opting for the Cyclones. He was a three-star prospect by 247Sports, Rivals and On3, and regarded as the No. 45 tight end overall in the country. 

Along with football, Burkle was a starter for the Cedar Rapids Prairie basketball team.

John Mackey Award goes to top college football tight end

Named for Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end John Mackey, the Mackey Award goes yearly to the top college football tight end. The award was first handed out in 2000.

Last year, Tyler Warren of Penn State was honored with the Mackey Award. Brock Bowers of Georgia had won it in 2023 and 2022.

Former Iowa Hawkeye standout and Iowa native Dallas Clark won the Mackey Award in 2002.

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Dana Becker
DANA BECKER

Dana Becker has been a sports writer in Iowa since 2000, writing for The Fort Dodge Messenger, Mason City Globe-Gazette, Cedar Rapids Gazette and others. Dana resides in northcentral Iowa and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in 2022 focused on the state of Iowa. Along with providing coverage of football and wrestling, Dana also spotlights cross country, swimming, basketball, track and field, soccer, tennis, golf, baseball and softball. He began writing for High School on SI in 2023.

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