Quote · New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
George Kittle on Tight End Respect, Mike Evans on the 49ers, F*ck Dallas Shirt & TEU Recap | EP 197
Where this was said
The Origin of Tight End U
At 28:18 · chapter starts 25:00
Travis asks Kittle to give the full origin story for the 92-percenters. It starts simply enough: Kittle was already training with 7 to 10 NFL tight ends in Nashville at the end of the COVID season and on a whim asked a near-retiring Greg Olsen if he'd come down to watch film. Olsen suggested inviting a couple more guys and bringing in a marketing team for a small sponsorship. [1] — George Kittle "Tight End U started as Kittle inviting retiring Greg Olsen to Nashville to watch film with 7 to 10 tight ends he was already training with.…" 24:58 The invite list said 20, but word spread like wildfire and the first event had 50 to 60 tight ends showing up at a high school gym called Lipscomb in Nashville. The event has grown every year since, with the newest wrinkle being Kyle Juszczyk attending to teach tight end and fullback hybrid techniques — a natural evolution as more teams use fullback-style motions from tight end alignments. Kittle is visibly excited about having Juice there, calling him the team's real-time 'fixer.'
Tight End U was originally planned for 20 tight ends but word spread quickly and the first event had 50 to 60 attendees.
Kittle says the 49ers' offense would not survive without Juice. Juszczyk doesn't just run routes — he fixes blown assignments, adjusts to missed blocks, and solves timing issues with Purdy's cadence mid-play. Players who understand football see a generational ball player.
