Miracles do exist.

Former Colorado State tight end, Dallin Holker, officially made the 53-man roster for the New Orleans Saints Aug. 27. The decorated athlete picked up an ankle injury toward the back end of training camp, but showed enough to stay with the team. Despite going undrafted earlier in the offseason, Holker finds himself a home in New Orleans.

In his final year at CSU, Holker was a unanimous pick for second-team All-American as well as first-team All-Mountain West. His six touchdowns in 2023 tied for an all-time record for tight ends within the program. He was also a finalist for the John Mackey Award, which is presented to the most outstanding tight end in collegiate football for a given year.

Even though Holker wasn’t picked from the draft board, the former Ram scored well at the 2024 NFL Combine. Within the tight end position, he ranked 4th in production, 10th in athleticism and 6th overall. 

The newly anointed Saint is currently listed at the bottom of the depth chart for his position with three players ahead of him. The severity of his ankle injury is relatively unknown, but reports haven’t reflected any seriousness thus far. A quick return to action is possible, but the work is far from over.

Holker will join Trey McBride as the only active NFL tight ends from CSU this year. Unlike McBride, he’ll have to fight just to stay on the roster. 

Reach Michael Hovey at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @michaelfhovey.

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