PROVO, Utah — The BYU football team held a closed scrimmage Saturday to end the third week of fall camp.
Saturday's scrimmage went over 120 plays at LaVell Edwards Stadium in prep for the 2025 season. Today's season preview looks at the tight end position.
Coach Kevin Gilbride is back for his second season leading the tight end group. The veteran has been in the coaching game since 2003 when he began his career as a graduate assistant at Syracuse. Since then, Gilbride has spent time at Georgetown and Temple before leaving the college game for the NFL in 2010.
Gilbride spent more than a decade in the NFL, coaching for the New York Giants where he earned a Super Bowl ring, Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers. He returned to the collegiate level in 2023 at Charlotte before joining the Cougars in 2024.
He began his playing career at BYU as a quarterback before transferring to Hawaii where he played both football and baseball.
BYU rebuilt the tight end room for 2025, bringing in several newcomers to bolster the returning unit.
Carsen Ryan, a local product from Orem transferred in from the University to Utah and is poised to lead the group. Ryan spent 2023 with the Utes, after two seasons at UCLA. The 6-foot-4, 250-pounder has played in 29 games in his career with 29 receptions, 400 yards and four touchdowns.
In addition to Ryan, BYU also brought in transfers Keayen Nead and Ethan Wood.
Nead was at New Mexico for spring football after transferring from Weber State where he played in 20 games since 2022. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound Nead is the nephew of former BYU and NFL tight end, Spencer Nead.
Wood attended Snow College and New Mexico State before joining the Cougars.
The two transfers join returners Ethan Erickson, Anthony Olsen, Noah Moeaki and Will Zundel. Erickson has appeared in 25 games over his career at BYU, snagging a touchdown in 2022.
Freshmen Cole Clement, Jacob Nye and Tucker Kelleher also joined the program to fill out the room and will aim to make an impact early.