2024 TCU Football Season Recap: Tight Ends

DJ Rogers and Baylor transfer Drake Dabney stepped in to replace NFL-bound Jared Wiley.

Tight ends were very involved in the TCU offense last season, when Jared Wiley hauled in 47 catches for 520 yards and eight touchdowns to earn All-Big 12 First Team recognition. Wiley was one of three Horned Frogs selected in the 2024 NFL Draft and is now playing for the Kansas City Chiefs, who are 15-1 overall and heading to the playoffs once again. The 2024 season was a different story for the tight ends, who weren’t featured nearly as much as the team’s potent wide receiving corps that included veteran playmakers like Savion Williams, Eric McAlister, JP Richardson and All-Big 12 Second Team award winner Jack Bech.

TCU went into the portal last offseason and signed former Baylor tight end Drake Dabney, who was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention after recording 33 receptions for 552 yards and five touchdowns last season. While Dabney appeared in all 13 games this season, his production dipped significantly from his final season with the Bears, as the 6-foot-5, 255-pounder concluded the 2024 campaign with only 193 receiving yards on 19 catches. Over one-third of those yards came during TCU’s New Mexico Bowl win over Louisiana, when Dabney brought in three receptions for 73 yards and dropped a potential touchdown.

TCU also leaned on returning tight end DJ Rogers, who totaled 142 yards and two scores on 12 receptions over 13 appearances in 2024. The former four-star recruit from Sammamish, Washington rotated with Dabney throughout the season and was used sparingly in the passing game. A notable absence from the TCU offense was redshirt senior tight end Chase Curtis, who was limited to four games this season due to an injury. Curtis was named a team captain before the season and was off to a somewhat promising start, catching seven passes for 77 yards and one touchdown before the injury cut his season short.

Although Dabney doesn’t have eligibility remaining after this season, both Rogers and Curtis could return for another go-around. The Horned Frogs have also bolstered their tight end room through the transfer portal once again, signing former LSU tight end and Fort Worth native Ka’Morreun Pimpton. Pimpton was a big-time four-star recruit out of high school and started his career at LSU, where he played two seasons and recorded seven catches for 80 yards before signing with the Horned Frogs. TCU also signed a 2025 tight end recruit in Mason Peterson, who’s a three-star prospect from Dickinson, Texas.

Dabney, Rogers and Curtis are three of the six tight ends who are currently on the TCU roster. Redshirt freshman Lafayette Kaiuway appeared in four games this season, finishing with one catch for one yard. Neither freshman Cade Keith nor sophomore Jax Porter saw game action this season. As the Horned Frogs prepare for next season, Rogers and Pimpton are the two players who appear most primed for significant reps at the tight end position. Should Curtis return for the 2025 campaign, he’ll certainly factor into the mix as well.