Iowa State junior tight end Charlie Kolar was named to the preseason John Mackey Award, announced today by the Friends of John Mackey.
The John Mackey Award is given annually to the nation’s best tight end.
Without a doubt, Kolar is one of the best tight end targets in the country in 2020, earning second-team All-America accolades by the FWAA and first-team All-Big 12 kudos after a breakout season in 2019.
A native of Norman, Okla., Kolar was one of eight semifinalists for the award in 2019. He led all Big 12 tight ends in receptions (51), receiving yards (697) and receiving touchdowns (7). His 697 receiving yards broke ISU’s season record for tight ends and ranked sixth nationally among FBS tight ends.
Kolar had five 70-yard receiving games in 2019 and 36 of his 51 catches went for first downs or touchdowns.
Pro Football Focus rates Kolar as the top returning tight end in the nation. He had the third-best overall grade (85.5%) for a tight end by PFF a year ago.
Kolar, who was also a first-team Academic All-American, has 10 career touchdown catches to tie for fourth among active FBS tight ends.
It is the second watch list that Kolar has been named to this summer after earning a spot on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List on Thursday.