UTSA film study: How new offense shifts role for Roadrunners tight ends

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UTSA Roadrunners tight end Brandon Young Jr. (89) celebrates a touchdown catch during a game against the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News)

Early in the second quarter of his UTSA debut, junior tight end Brandon Young left a memorable mark.  

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Lining up in the left slot as the Roadrunners snapped the ball from the 7-yard line, Young searched for space on a run up the seam toward the back of the end zone. The throw from quarterback Owen McCown was high and a bit behind him to evade a lurking linebacker, forcing Young to spin, leap and stretch only his right hand toward the ball.  

He snared the pass with one hand and secured it with the other, tapping both feet inbounds before falling out of the back of the end zone. For a player who had just five catches for 17 yards last year at North Texas, the score was an unexpected early highlight.  

But the role of Young and his entire position group under new offensive coordinator Rick Bowie remains unclear. Tight ends accounted for just two catches and played a much smaller portion of snaps than in previous years under coach Jeff Traylor, as UTSA's 45-16 win against UTRGV in Saturday's opener in the Alamodome provided a first look at how the position might be minimized this season.  

"Our tight end room is young, and they're trying to be developed right now, so it's about what I thought it would look like," Traylor said. "I thought our tight end play was average at best."  

Tight ends combined to man 66 snaps on UTSA's 62 offensive plays, per Pro Football Focus, meaning the Roadrunners' calls utilized an average of 1.06 tight ends per play. Across Traylor's first six years, the Roadrunners averaged anywhere from 1.25 to 1.58 tight ends per snap over the full seasons.  

UTSA Roadrunners tight end Brandon Young Jr. (89) makes a one-handed touchdown catch during a game against the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News)

The use of traditional inline tight ends, lined up attached to the offensive line, was even more diminished. The Roadrunners utilized inline tight ends for just 31 snaps across 62 plays, or an average of 0.5 inline tight ends per snap. Through Traylor's first six seasons, that number ranged from 0.80 to 1.09.  

Traylor said the shift is "what we knew we'd be" and "why we made the changes we made." Bowie brings an air raid style that is less reliant on tight ends, easing the burden on a group in transition. After losing Houston Thomas and Patrick Overmyer to the transfer portal, UTSA's tight end room was left with unproven returners Ty Rupe and Isaiah Butler-Tanner, as well as unheralded transfers Young and Miles Campbell (Florida A&M). 

"It's always about the players," Traylor said. "You ask players to do what they can do. If you ask them to do things they can't do, that's not good coaching."  

Young's catch came from a rare five-wide set. Bowie's call put pressure on every part of the field, with two targets roaming the flats, two more attacking the corners and Young working the back of the end zone. Traylor has often touted McCown's improved health and mobility through the preseason, and the quarterback run threat forces Texas State to stay honest near the line of scrimmage, too.  

The Roadrunners also scored three offensive touchdowns with one back and one receiver in the formation, adding one score from a set with a back and four wide receivers.  

McCown connected on one downfield shot to AJ Wilson for a 36-yard touchdown, but he attempted just one other pass that traveled 20 or more yards in the air. He still managed an efficient 22-for-27 passing for 275 yards and three touchdowns, as the Roadrunners found explosive plays without needing to look deep.  

DJ Allen took a screen pass 62 yards for a touchdown, Will Henderson broke off a 75-yard touchdown run, and A'Marion Peterson added a 53-yard touchdown sprint during the fourth quarter.  

Asked what he saw on his breakaway run, Henderson answered first with a hand motion of the line parting, as he was enabled to go untouched on his sprint to the end zone. UTSA's blocking grades were the weak point of the offense, per Pro Football Focus, but Traylor defended the line's performance during an offensive showing that was "cleaner than you think."  

"We were pretty good. We weren't bad," Traylor said. "We're still getting healthy. There'll be movement through the year, just from getting guys back. We're getting closer, but we're not where we want to be yet."  

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This article originally published at UTSA film study: How new offense shifts role for Roadrunners tight ends.

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