The next Travis Kelce or George Kittle? UCF’s Caden Piening displays NFL potential

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UCF‘s Caden Piening has all the physical traits of a prototypical tight end.

He’s large and powerful, with an elite build (6-foot-5, 245 pounds) similar to NFL standouts like Kansas City’s Travis Kelce and San Francisco’s George Kittle, who redefined the tight end position. Kelce, as a receiving specialist and Kittle, for his ability to be a ferocious blocker.

The 19-year-old Piening is still early in his development, but he’s shown flashes of his potential, including this past weekend in UCF’s 21-13 win over TCU.

In the second quarter with the Knights driving inside the red zone, Piening broke from the line of scrimmage like a thoroughbred, racing down the left hash mark before turning to catch the pass from quarterback Keyone Jenkins inside the 5-yard line.

At the same time, two TCU defenders crashed into Piening, hoping to bring the 6-foot-5, 245-pound target down, but the redshirt freshman had other ideas, dragging safety Julius Simms (6-2, 205) with him as he plunged into the end zone for a touchdown.

“I saw the safety roll over and Lightz put it on me, so I did what I could to get into the end zone,” said Piening. “I knew I was pretty close, so I had to do what I could to get in the end zone.”

It was Piening’s first career collegiate touchdown and would become the go-ahead score. He would finish with two catches for 30 yards. Yet, the personal accolades were second to the ultimate goal.

“(I’m) more about the win,” said Piening. “It was a great win for the offense and defense. The defense played their butts off. I don’t know how many turnovers they had, but I know they only allowed about 30 rushing yards. It was a team win today.”

Piening signed with UCF as part of its 2025 recruiting class after a successful stint at Anderson High School in Cincinnati. He chose to join the program even though former coach Gus Malzahn initially recruited him and resigned after the 2024 season.

“When I stepped on campus, I knew this was home. It felt right being here,” Piening recalled of his decision. “When I found out the (Scott) Frost was coming, I got on the phone with him and believed everything he said. I trusted what he was going to do.”

When Piening arrived on campus in 2025, he joined a roster that featured Kylan Fox, Thomas Wadsworth and transfers Dylan Wade and Max Drag. He appeared in four games as a freshman but was limited by an undisclosed injury.

“He’s a guy that we had a role for going into his freshman year, but it got derailed by injury,” said offensive coordinator Steve Cooper, who also coached tight ends last season.

Wade became one of the top tight ends in the Big 12 last season, finishing as UCF’s second-leading receiver with 523 yards on 43 catches and a team-high five touchdowns — all program-best numbers for a tight end.

Still, Piening became someone the Knights wanted to retain in the offseason, pairing him with Wade in 2026. The goal was to have the perfect 1-2 punch, with both players as versatile, pass-catching weapons, while also being aggressive blockers.

“Caden’s one of the young guys who has a really high ceiling and you’re starting to see what he can do,” said Frost. “Dylan had a great year last year catching the football, so we feel great about our tight end spot. There’s going to be more to come with Caden.”

Through the first four games, Wade has eight catches for 53 yards while Piening has four catches for 60 yards and a touchdown. Piening is the second-highest-graded (78.3) receiver on the team, according to Pro Football Focus.

“Seeing this guy grow into a playmaker and an every-down tight end. He’s physical at the point of attack and a really smart kid. He always has a smile on his face and it’s cool to see him doing big things,” said Cooper.

Piening’s performance has drawn some comparison to another former UCF tight end: Jordan Akins. The 6-3, 249-pound Akins spent four seasons with the Knights from 2014-2017, amassing 1,149 receiving yards before being drafted by the Houston Texans in 2018.

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“I have seen some Jordan Akins film. We watched it,” said Piening. “He was here with Frost and I want to model the way he plays. He was a great tight end here and a leader.”

“He still has a ways to go to catch Jordan Akins,” added Frost. “He played in the league for a long time and was a really good player, but I think Caden can get there.”

Please find me on X, Bluesky or Instagram at @osmattmurschel. Email: mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com. Sign up for the Sentinel’s Knights Weekly newsletter for a roundup of all our UCF coverage.

Up next

What: UCF (3-1, 1-0 Big 12) at No. 20 Houston (3-1, 0-1 Big 12)

When: Noon, Saturday

Where: TDCU Stadium, Houston

TV: ESPN2

Favorite: Houston by 12.5 points

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