UCF’s Caden Piening Was 5th Highest-Graded TE in Week 6
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Caden Piening role in the UCF Knights' offense is growing every week, becoming a reliable tight end in the passing and blocking game.
Piening had a season-high performance in UCF's loss to the No. 18 Oklahoma State Cowboys last Saturday. He caught seven passes for 60 yards and one touchdown.
Pro Football Network ranked the redshirt freshman as the fifth-highest-graded tight end from Week 6 with an 89.8 grade. Four other players had 90-plus grades, and Piening edged out Pittsburgh's Carson Kent, who had an 89.5 grade.
The redshirt freshman has outplayed his co-starter Dylan Wade, who made program history last season. Wade finished second on the team in receptions (53) and yards (523); all single-season bests for a tight end since 1996.
Piening has 149 yards and two touchdowns through 16 catches, while Wade has 53 yards on eight catches. The senior has struggled with injuries this season, missing Weeks 3, 5 and 6.
He joins a long list of fellow Knights sidelined for multiple games. UCF's passing game hasn't taken much of a hit, though, and that's a credit to Piening stepping up.
The 6-foot-5 tight end has recorded 12 catches in the past two weeks. He's become the Knights' No. 1 tight end and has produced like one.
Quarterback Keyone Jenkins has built a strong connection with the redshirt freshman. Piening is one of Jenkins' favorite red zone targets, as both scores came when UCF was in the opponent's 20-yard line.
The redshirt freshman is not only building his case to lead the tight end room for the next few years; he's showing NFL scouts he can contribute at a high level.
Piening said he watched film on former Knights tight end Jordan Akins, whom Scott Frost coached during his first tenure, in his postgame press conference.
Frost shared high praise for the young tight end, saying he has a "really high ceiling" and that spectators are seeing what he can do. Akins is a high bar for the redshirt freshman, but UCF's coach believes he has the potential to reach his level.
Akins became a star at UCF, especially contributing to the 2017 squad's undefeated streak. He caught 32 passes for 515 yards and four touchdowns, earning him First Team All-ACC honors.
Piening is on pace to finish the season with 40 catches, 372 yards and four touchdowns with his current averages. That's a remarkable turnaround for a young tight end who missed most of last season due to injury.
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