2025 NFL Draft: Yellow Jackets TE Jackson Hawes Ranked As One of the Drafts Best Tight Ends By Mel Kiper
One of the best transfer portal additions that Georgia Tech made this offseason was tight end Jackson Hawes. Hawes came to The Flats from Yale and found his role immediately for the Yellow Jackets, becoming a force when blocking in the run game and catching tough passes over the middle. With the season that he had, Hawes really elevated his draft stock and earned a Senior Bowl invite. With three months until the 2025 NFL Draft, Hawes is stedily climbing up draft boards and in Mel Kipers latest draft rankings, Hawes ranked as the No. 8 tight end in the draft. He came in behind Penn State's Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland (Michigan), Mason Taylor (LSU), Terrance Ferguson (Oregon), Gunnar Helm (Texas), Oscar Delp (Georgia), and Mitchell Evans (Notre Dame).
The Senior Bowl is widely regarded as the preeminent college football all-star game and National Football League Draft showcase. Hawes is set to become the 58th Georgia Tech player to participate in the Senior Bowl and the third in the last four seasons, joining DL Keion White, who would go on to be selected in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, and DB Tariq Carpenter, who was a seventh-round pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2022. Hawes is the first Tech tight end to receive a Senior Bowl invite since Billy Martin in 1964.
This season for the Yellow Jackets, Hawes set career highs with 16 catches for 195 yards.
Prior to his arrival on The Flats, Hawes caught 35 passes for 371 yards over four seasons at Yale (2019, 2021-23). He was a second-team all-Ivy League selection in 2022.
With Hawes leaving, along with Ryland Goede and Avery Boyd, Georgia Tech has once again had to dip into the transfer portal to land some replacements at tight end and they got commitments from Wake Forest transfer Harry Lodge and Cal transfer J.T. Byrne.
Lodge was a class of 2022 recruit and played for the Demon Deacons for two seasons. This season, Lodge caught 12 passes for 110 yards. Pro Football Focus gave him a 48.8 overall grade on offense in 400 snaps, including a 46.4 grade in run blocking. The 6'6 240 LBS tight end from Cambridge, MA will provide depth for the Yellow Jackets along with Byrne, Luke Harpring, Brett Seither, David Prince, Josh Beetham, and others.
Byrne might be the perfect fit at Georgia Tech as a blocking tight end.
According to 247Sports, the 6'6 240 LBS tight end was ranked as a three-star transfer prospect, the No. 636 player in the transfer portal, and the No. 35 tight end in the portal. Pro Football Focus gave him a 67.5 grade on offense this season, including a 78.5 run-blocking grade. Hawes was a tremendous asset in the run game this year and Byrne looks like he can step in and fill that role. Of his 63 offensive snaps, 51 of them were in run blocking according to PFF, showing how he was used at Cal last season.
Here is a scouting report on Byrne as a high school prospect from 247Sports analyst Greg Biggins:
"We're big on multi-sport athletes who showcase functional athleticism and that fits Byrne to a tee. He's a three-sport athlete who also plays basketball and baseball but football will be his meal ticket. That multi-sport background not only helps a player stay fluid and avoid burn out but means he has never had the benefit of a spring conditioning program, so he's far from maxed out like so many young high school players we see. At 6-6, 230 pounds, he has a prototype tight end frame who can run and uses his athleticism and body control to make contested catches and win jump balls."
Related Links
Georgia Tech Football: PFF Grades and Snap Counts From the 2024 Season
How To Watch No. 13 Georgia Tech vs Virginia Tech: Tipoff Time, TV Channel, and Odds