Jack Pedersen
Jack Pedersen is a high-powered contact-driven tight end for UCLA. His drive and love of the game of football go unmatched by any other player at his position in the country. His physical approach to the game stands out and his ability to move the chains down the field as well as being able to protect the run and the pass make him unique. Jack’s ability to block on the line is special and his athletic skills give him the ability to get down the field and lay blocks on backs and safeties. Jack Pedersen’s playing time early in his career has been minimal, yet with Jack’s mentality and his passion, he is sure to have a lasting impact on UCLA and will look to lead the nation at his position into the future. Jack Pedersen is proudly represented by Optimal Sports Management.
SHOP NOWJack Pedersen
Class: Sophomore
Position: Tight End
Height: 6’4
Weight: 252
Hometown: Murrieta, California
High School: Vista Murrieta
Birthday: 11/1/03
Jack Pedersen is currently a tight end for UCLA and was rated a 4-star tight end coming out of Vista Murrieta HS, in Southern California. With his dominant physical skills he is elite at protecting during the run and the pass but can easily become a threat downfield for an easy first down due to his sneaky elite receiving skills. Jack Pedersen’s multi-layered protection skills flashed early in his career and his coaches caught on early to how Jack has the ability to make a large impact on any team he will be on in his future. In Jack Pedersen’s monster senior season, he led Vista Murrieta HS to the CIF Southern Section Division 2 tournament, as well as being selected as an Under Armor All-American and selected for the 2022 Polynesian Bowl. These accolades that Jack Pedersen stacked up in high school caught the eye of many prestigious football programs around the country and made him the perfect fit for UCLA.
Jack Pedersen's Background
Growing up Jack Pedersen has always had high ambitions, especially when it comes to sports. Jack Pedersen’s domination as a Bronco at Vista Murrieta HS made him a highly-touted recruit by many coaches and highly feared by many of his opponents. His 13.5 yard average per reception his senior year caught the eye of nearby UCLA coaches. Jack Pedersen also spent time at IMG academy in Florida, progressing his skills against some of the best players in the country. What pushed Jack Pedersen to the next level and a national spotlight was his ability to block for the run and the pass at an elite level. Jack has always exclaimed about his love for contact and driving his competitor into the ground. His love for domination thrusted his career to the collegiate level and the coaches at UCLA see the potential impact that his physical mindset will have on their game in the near future.
SHOP NOWJack Pedersen's Football Family
Growing up in Southern California, Jack Pedersen has always had somebody to look up to in the world of football, in this case, it was his father, Jon Pedersen. Jon grew up with similar aspirations as his son, to become a dominant football player. Jack Pedersen’s father was a great all-around high school football player that played 5 years of collegiate football at the University of Nebraska as a snapper and backup guard. Jack Pedersen attributes the way he approaches the game to his father stating in an interview with cardinalsports: “He’s taught me almost everything I know," Jack Pedersen said of his father. "Since I was a kid he told me to always compete and never quit.” The mentality that Jack Pedersen’s father instilled in him at a young age quickly helped him become one of the most highly touted tight ends in the country and gave him a hard-nosed and old-school approach to the game of football at a young age.
SHOP NOWContact Driven Mentality
Jack Pedersen played tight end his entire high school career, and outside of looking up to his father as an athlete, Jack has stated that he grew up idolizing Rob Gronkowski and the way that he approaches the game. Many facets of Jack’s game at UCLA are similar to what we see with Rob’s game, Jack Pedersen plays with the same high intensity and physicalness that truly separates them from anyone on the field. Jack Pedersen can create elite offense as we saw with his huge 13.5 average yards per reception and his 6 touchdowns in 10 games his senior season but where he is one of the best players in the country is when it comes to his hard-nosed blocking. Jack Pedersen thrives with contact and putting his opponent on the ground, Jack emphasizes his mentality and his blocking in an interview with press enterprise: “the best part of football is taking a guy and putting him down and then looking up to see our speedy tailback going 50 or 60 yards downfield” UCLA looks to utilize Jack Pedersen’s physicality in the upcoming seasons after one of the most promising seasons in recent history.
Jack Pedersen and NIL
With the new age of college athletics, revenue generation for programs is at an all-time high, with the income that these teams are getting, the players now have the ability to take advantage of the new era of collegiate athletics. Jack Pedersen and UCLA have both seen major gains from this new era. Jack Pedersen is partnered with Optimal Sports Management, who are committed to making sure that Jack Pedersen has the ability to leverage his name, image, and likeness by partnering with many companies through quid pro quo deals. With Jack Pedersen’s current program, UCLA, making the move to the BIG 10, the potential for Jack Pedersen and OSM to leverage his NIL has never been higher, since as of July 20th, 2022, Opendorse has stated that the Big Ten Conference holds the top spot in total athlete compensation. With this advantage, Jack Pedersen’s NIL value is at it’s highest and is only on its way up in the future.
The Next Big UCLA Tight End
With UCLA’s recent 9-4 season-ending #21 in the final AP Top 25 ranking, UCLA’s football had one of the most successful seasons that they have had in the recent past. One thing that the Bruins have done better than almost every program in the country recently is utilizing and producing elite NFL-ready tight ends. In the 2019, 2020, and 2022 NFL Draft, the UCLA Bruins had tight ends Caleb Wilson, Devin Asiasi, and Greg Dulcich all drafted. Even with Caleb Wilson playing a minimal role for the Philadelphia Eagles, Devin Asiasi has played an important role for the New England Patriots and the Cincinnati Bengals over the past couple of seasons. In his rookie season for the Denver Broncos, Greg Dulcich has proved his 3rd round draft pick worth by putting up 411 yards on 33 catches as well as 2 touchdowns in only 10 games. This recent success by UCLA and their elite production of tight ends is a great sign for Jack Pedersen’s future for the Bruins. His unparalleled physicality in the blocking game will get him on the field in the very near future and his natural offensive instincts will continue to grow exponentially all while UCLA looks to make a push as one of the best teams in the country.
Jack Pedersen’s Future
Jack Pedersen looks to fill the shoes of the recent success of elite tight ends that have come out of UCLA. Right now Jack Pedersen is listed as a running back on UCLA’s roster for formation purposes but he is making his way up toward the top of the tight end room. Jack Pedersen possesses the natural elite talent as a blocker which is recognized by the UCLA coaches as well as professional coaches in his future. His goal is to move UCLA up the rankings going through next season. Overall team success starts with pass and run blocking and with Jack Pedersen lining up UCLA is sure to have an even more successful season.
SHOP NOWJack Pedersen’s Mission
Rated as a 4-star athlete in high school Jack Pedersen has made a significant impact on any team he's been on from Vista Murrieta HS, to IMG Academy, to now UCLA. What he has planned for his future is to continue helping UCLA as well as achieving his goal of getting the ability to play professional football. Jack Pedersen takes his high-intensity mentality to everything he does in his life whether it's being a good son, a great teammate, or a great blocker on the field. He will currently move the UCLA football program further towards their greater goal all while taking advantage of his name, image, and likeness with Optimal Sports Management
SHOP NOWJack Pedersen has always been a block-first tight end. He enjoys setting the edges and making sure that his quarterback or running back has the time they need to stay efficient. Jack Pedersen’s teammates from his freshman year in high school to his freshman year at UCLA all acknowledge him as a team first leader who loves to do whatever he can do to see his team succeed on and off the field. Jack Pedersen is a natural-born leader which just improves his natural blocking instincts while on the field.