Introduction
Jared Pinkney is an American football tight end for the Vanderbilt Commodores.
Early life and high school
Pinkney grew up in Norcross, Georgia and attended Norcross High School. As a senior, he caught 32 passes for 480 yards and three touchdowns and was named first team All-region and honorable mention All-State. Rated a consensus three-star recruit, Pinkney committed to play college football at Vanderbilt over offers from Nebraska, Miami, Florida, and Missouri.
College career
Pinkney used a medical redshirt as a true freshman after suffering an injury in the season opener. He was named to Athlon Sports' Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman team after catching 22 passes for 274 receiving yards and two touchdowns and posted 22 receptions, 273 receiving yards and three touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore. He entered his redshirt junior season on the watchlist for the John Mackey Award. Pinkney finished the season with 50 receptions for 774 yards and seven touchdowns and was named second team All-SEC by the Associated Press.
Pinkney was again named to the Mackey Award watchlist and was named second team preseason All-SEC going into his redshirt senior season. He was also listed as the top tight end prospect for the 2020 NFL Draft by Todd McShay and Mel Kiper of ESPN and as a projected first round pick by Pro Football Focus. Pinkney experienced a down year as a senior, finishing the season with 20 receptions for 233 yards and two touchdowns in 11 games, missing the final game of the season due to injury.