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Sep 28, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide tight end CJ Dippre (81) catches a pass against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first half at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Alabama Tight End CJ Dippre Describes What He's Trying to Prove at NFL Combine

Originally posted on Alabama Crimson Tide on SI
By Joey Van Zummeren | Last updated Feb 27, 2025 5:12 PM ET

INDIANAPOLIS — By the time he was in seventh grade, CJ Dippre was already bigger, taller and stronger than anyone in his high school besides a few upperclassmen.

"You just gotta endure that role," the former Alabama tight end said Thursday at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. "I was trying to hang out with older people just so I didn't look I was always hanging out with little kids."

in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Dippre played quarterback in high school. Though the area might be great for a comedy series to be set in, it isn't exactly a recruiting hub. Dippre and his dad worked on their own on his recruiting process, sending tapes to schools themselves. The efforts garnered interest in Dippre at quarterback, defensive end and tight end.

Tight end seems like it was the natural fit for the 6-foot-5, 262-pound Dippre, who turned into a reliable blocker who would come to embrace physicality.

"I take a lot of pride in it," Dippre said of his blocking ability. "It's just will and grit power to do it. You gotta stick your face in the C gap. It's a man's game down there. Especially in the SEC."

The strength of Dippre's game started developing when he was in middle school. His dad, a power lifter, started working with Dippre in the gym in their basement. By eighth grade, Dippre was hooked on weight lifting.

That work translated to Dippre's ability as a tough blocker.

“CJ’s tough as hell," Dippre's teammate Robbie Ouzts said Thursday at the Combine. "Whatever the task is, he’s not going to back down from it. He’s an athletic freak. There’s really nothing I’ve seen from that kid that he can’t do.”

Though he's mostly known as a blocker, Dippre is looking to show teams at the Combine that he can be a receiving option too. In the 2024 regular season, Dippre caught 19 passes on 25 targets for 238 yards for the Crimson Tide. His best year as a receiver came in 2022 with Maryland, when he caught 30 passes for 314 yards and three touchdowns.

"I think I do have really good routes," Dippre said. "Can make people get off me. Can get away from a man defender really easily in coverage. I didn't have the most opportunities [as a receiver], but I did what I could do with my opportunities."

A versatile tight end who can be used as a receiving threat and as a blocker can create quite a bit of versatility for an NFL offense. The tight end position as a whole has been changing in the NFL over recent years, with teams relying more often on the position in the run game.

"This last year, you see a lot of tight ends, taking snaps under center or you see a lot more three tight end sets or a lot more. So I just feel I'm coming into it at the right time as the positions evolving."

On top of his receiving game, Dippre is also looking to use this week at the Combine to show teams his character, which is embodied by the seven tattoos on his body. There's an illustration of a lion on the back on one of his calves, and one on his left forearm with the message "stay humble, hustle hard."

"I’'m someone who stays true to myself," Dippre said. "I want someone to draft me for who I am as a character and as a person rather than just a football player. I don't want him to be looked at as just a football player, but someone that, you'd wanna be around in the facility."

Dippre and Ouzts will both work out Friday at the Combine, with drills at Lucas Oil Stadium beginning at 2 p.m. CT.