cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / Lance Mason /Wisconsin

Lance Mason

TE · Wisconsin · Sr · #86

Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.

398 REC YDS · 30 REC · 4 REC TD

2026 RETURNINGReturning to Wisconsin for 2026

2026 Outlook

Returning to Wisconsin for 2026

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Tight end · Wisconsin

Returning around him

  • 40% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
  • Transfer portal: +8 net (33 in / 25 out)

2026 Award watch

No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)

Wisconsin · Last season: 4-8 · Talent rank #28 · 2026 recruiting class #27

TE · WISCONSIN · BIG TEN

Lance Mason

  • 4
  • #86
  • 240 lb
  • Rockwall, TX

CFB Zeitgeist Score

73

Solid starter in the position cohort. Carried by rec yards at the 80th percentile.

Heisman Heat

Awaiting

Not on the live Heisman board this week.

Fan Belief

Awaiting

Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.

Respect Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

Reality Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

ACCOLADE PROBABILITY

Heisman

TOP TE AWARD

Mackey

CONSENSUS

All-American

Player Standing · 17 rungs

Tier 2 · Starter

R07 · Impact starter

Impact starter. Producing measurable value above replacement.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
No recruit profile
CFB
College
Wisconsin
2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.

PositionTE
Class4
Jersey86
Measurements240 lb
HometownRockwall, TX
Primary teamWisconsin

Recruiting Pedigree

How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.

Top pedigree Not on file No matched recruiting profile in the loaded archive
Composite rating -- Composite rating unavailable for this player
Signed with -- Commitment history unavailable
Origin -- Hometown and high school unavailable
Class Profile Context
No recruiting profile is on file for this player.

Transfer Arc

Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.

Portal moves 0 No portal entry on file
Latest destination -- --
Transfer stars -- CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility -- Transfer date TBD
Season Move Context
No transfer portal moves on file for this player.

Heisman Lens

Where the model places this player relative to the rest of the Heisman field.

Current nowcast--Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast--Where the full season sim points
Win probability--Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability--Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability--Chance to appear anywhere on a ballot
Best official finish--Best completed Heisman placement on file

Heisman Futures

Not yet listed on major futures markets.

Achievements

  • Program Benchmark 5.5% Program Benchmark Season leader for the program at the player's position across the headline volume metric (passing yards / rushing yards / receiving yards). Held by 5.5% of the 2025 pool. Team leader in receiving yards (398).

Selector Grid · 2025

AP
FWAA
AFCA
WCFF
SN
SI

Today’s Hot-Take

The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.

Anti-Take

PENDING

The contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.

The Room on Lance Mason

Fan sentiment ·

Belief Meter

Awaiting per-cohort signal

Sample 0 mentions
Confidence BELOW-FLOOR

Top Take

Trajectory

Cohort divergence mapbearishbullishheatedcalmRivals: 2 mentions · belief +0 · "**https://www.on3.com/news/top-50-returning-college-basketball-players-in-2026-2"RivalsNational: 2 mentions · belief +0 · "It's the locked on podcast network your team every day Get your daily college sp"National
  • Rivals · n=2
  • National · n=2

Rival Radar

How rival fanbases talk about Lance Mason

Only 2 rival mention(s) — below the 4-mention floor for a defensible read.

2025 Signature · 2025 season

Yards per reception

13.3

yds

All FBS WRs, min 20 receptions

National rank #203 of 531
Percentile vs All FBS WRs, min 20 receptions 62nd

Why it matters

#203 of 531 All FBS WRs at 13.3 yards per reception (30 catches).

Vs cohort

This player 13.3 (62th)

HIGH · n=30 cohort 531

  • Also strong
  • Receiving TDs#161 / 531
  • Receiving yards (total)#301 / 531

Signature Moment

Week 2 vs Middle Tennessee — 102 ypr

Result W 42-10

The week the volume broke through — put up 102 yds vs Middle Tennessee.

A 3-act season arc returns once this player has six or more games on the ledger.

Season Pace · Projection

Where the receiving totals stand

projecting to 13-game
Through 11g
398Rec yards
30Receptions
4Rec TDs
Per game
36.2Rec yards
3Receptions
0Rec TDs
Projected (13g)
470.4Rec yards
35Receptions
5Rec TDs

To hit 700-yard receiver (currently 398): needs 151/game over remaining 2.

To hit 1,000-yard receiver (currently 398): needs 301/game over remaining 2.

To hit 60-catch season (currently 30): needs 15/game over remaining 2.

To hit 80-catch season (currently 30): needs 25/game over remaining 2.

To hit 8 receiving TDs (currently 4): needs 2/game over remaining 2.

To hit 10 receiving TDs (currently 4): needs 3/game over remaining 2.

Why the honors trail matters

The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.

The useful clue on this card is not just the Heisman rank, but the broader honors spine. Lance Mason already has 1 loaded recognition item, which helps distinguish a player who is merely productive from one who is already earning selector-level validation.

Current place -- -- win | -- finalist
Role load 7.8% Overall usage share
Profile quirk Honors spine 1 honors loaded

2025 Season · Final

Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.

Last season

TE season snapshot

2025 season snapshot | final

2025 season snapshot | finalData: CFBD player stats + local Heisman modelPeer context: same position + same level
Receptions 30 4 rec TD | #53/475 (89th pct)
Receiving yards 398 13.3 per catch | #36/475 (93rd pct)
Scrimmage yards 405 Total offensive yardage | #36/475 (93rd pct)
Player identity What kind of player is this?

30-second read

What kind of player is this?

Target magnet | Big-play receiver against FBS receiving peers.

Target magnetBig-play receiver

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Receiving

REC
30 89th
YDS
398 93rd
YPR
13.3 82nd
TD
4 95th

Rushing

CAR
1 51st
YDS
7 57th
YPC
7.0 79th
TD
0 69th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 11 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppRECYDSAVGTDLONGNote
Wk 2W 42-10vs Middle Tennessee710214.6134Season-high 102 yds
Wk 3L 14-38@ Alabama23015.0019
Wk 4L 10-27vs Maryland5459.0115
Wk 6L 10-24@ Michigan33010.0016
Wk 7L 0-37vs Iowa12929.0029
Wk 8L 0-34vs Ohio State23115.5024
Wk 9L 7-21@ Oregon294.517
Wk 11W 13-10vs Washington155.005
Wk 12L 7-31@ Indiana14545.0145
Wk 13W 27-10vs Illinois22311.5017
Wk 14L 7-17@ Minnesota44912.3026
Total3039815.6445
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score

Traditional history

Traditional Stats

Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.

Season rows Career row

Season context · Team result + system

2025Wisconsin4-8HC: Luke Fickell · Run-heavy, slow tempo
SeasonTeam
2025Wisconsin3039813.34--
Career1 loaded season3039813.34--
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context

Advanced metrics second

Advanced Metrics

Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.

Usage Value Context
Pass share

The tight end's share of the passing offense, which helps distinguish a featured receiving tight end from a secondary option.

Role share

A blended usage view that shows how often the offense flows through the tight end compared with other same-level peers.

Peer percentile

Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.

Traditional first

The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.

Usage 7.8% 18.3% pass-game share | #9/468 (98th pct)
Return yards 0 0 return TD
Touchdowns 4 Across offense and returns | #27/475 (95th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Receiving Receptions 30 #53/475 89th pct Volumevs FBS TE
Receiving Receiving yards 398 #36/475 93rd pct Volumevs FBS TE
Receiving Receiving TD 4 #27/475 95th pct Scoringvs FBS TE
Receiving Yards / catch 13.3 #85/475 82nd pct Efficiencyvs FBS TE
Usage Pass share 18.3% #9/468 98th pct Air-game usagevs FBS TE
Rushing Rushing LONG 7 #17/50 68th pct Metricvs FBS TE
Rushing Rushing yards 7 #24/53 57th pct Volumevs FBS TE
Rushing Yards / carry 7.0 #12/53 79th pct Efficiencyvs FBS TE
Rushing Carries 1 #30/59 51st pct Volumevs FBS TE
Rushing Rush TD 0 #20/62 69th pct Scoringvs FBS TE
Receiving Receiving LONG 45 #50/475 90th pct Metricvs FBS TE
Usage 3rd-down usage 9.8% #29/468 94th pct Money-down loadvs FBS TE
Usage Passing-down usage 8.6% #41/468 91st pct Known-passing sharevs FBS TE
Usage Role share 7.8% #19/468 96th pct Share of team offensevs FBS TE
Usage 1st-down usage 7.7% #14/468 97th pct Early-down loadvs FBS TE
Usage Standard-down usage 7.4% #19/468 96th pct Base-situation sharevs FBS TE
Usage 2nd-down usage 6.8% #46/468 90th pct Middle-down loadvs FBS TE
Usage Rush share 0.3% #43/468 91st pct Ground-game usagevs FBS TE

Player Standing

Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.

ALL-CONF HM

On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex

ALL-CONF HM · Rung 9 of 16

Why he’s here

All-Conference honorable mention / 2nd team — the recognition has started.

What moves him up

A best-at-position run lifts to 1st team.

What moves him down

A back-end conference finish drops out of the honor list.

Accolade streams

StatusAwaiting tracker

The Mackey award tracker integrates per-week probability once a dedicated scraper for this award lands. Confirmed past winners and finalists for this player will surface here.

Splits · Per-game

2025 season · 11 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

REC/gYDS/gYPRTD/g
Home6g3.039.214.10.3
Road5g2.432.617.40.4

Win vs Loss

REC/gYDS/gYPRTD/g
Wins3g3.343.310.40.3
Losses8g2.533.517.50.4

First half vs Second half

REC/gYDS/gYPRTD/g
Weeks 1-75g3.647.215.50.4
Weeks 8+6g2.027.015.60.3

Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the TE cohort

73Solid starter
7 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: yards / catch (85th). Strength: rec tds (80th).

Yards / catch#26 / 175 · 85th pct
13.3rece
Rec TDs#27 / 175 · 80th pct
4rece
Rec yards#36 / 175 · 80th pct
398rece
Long catch#44 / 175 · 74th pct
45rece
Receptions#53 / 175 · 69th pct
30rece
Rush yards#12 / 33 · 64th pct
7rush
Rush TDs#14 / 33 · 30th pct
0rush

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.

Advanced Savant · TE · 2025

Percentile Card

Advanced opponent-adjusted percentile bars are coming soon for this player.

P4G5All FBS
EPA / dropback
awaiting
CPOE
awaiting
Success rate
awaiting
Explosive rate (20+)
awaiting
aDOT
awaiting
Deep-ball accuracy
awaiting
Pressure-to-sack
awaiting
3rd-down EPA
awaiting
Red-zone TD rate
awaiting
Play-action EPA
awaiting
Scramble EPA
awaiting
Turnover-worthy play rate
awaiting

Advanced Savant

Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.

Advanced opponent-adjusted metrics are coming soon for this player. Selected cohort: P4.

Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match

Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile

3 peers · 7 metrics
Lance MasonWisconsinTre Williams IIINorth Texas· 91% simBoden GroenKansas· 91% simRocky BeersColorado State· 91% sim
Yards / catch
85
Mason
77
III
77
Groen
77
Beers
Rec TDs
80
Mason
89
III
89
Groen
98
Beers
Rec yards
80
Mason
75
III
87
Groen
78
Beers
Long catch
74
Mason
88
III
76
Groen
78
Beers
Receptions
69
Mason
69
III
83
Groen
72
Beers
Rush yards
64
Mason
Rush TDs
30
Mason

Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.

Player DNA

The Complete TE

Dual-threat: blocks when needed, catches when needed. Coveted on both sides.

TE

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Jake Briningstool’s 2022 season.

Jake Briningstool

85%match

Clemson · 2022

#2

Cameron Latu

Alabama · 2022

All-SECNFL Rd 3 · Pk 38
84%
#3

Oscar Delp

Georgia · 2024

All-SECNFL Rd 3 · Pk 9
82%
#4

Henry Pearson

App State · 2022

All-Sun Belt
79%
#5

Jordan Dingle

Kentucky · 2022

77%

Matches Jake on

Total EPA (college ability)
Weight
Yards / reception

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Justin Holmes's senior season at Pittsburgh (2025).

Justin Holmes

89%match

Pittsburgh · 2025

#2

Seydou Traore

Mississippi State · 2025

All-Sun BeltNFL Rd 5
82%
#3

Dallas Payne

Florida International · 2025

80%
#4

Josh Kattus

Kentucky · 2025

77%
#5

Kole Taylor

West Virginia · 2023

All-Big 12
76%

Matches Justin on

Reception volume
TD rate
Total EPA (college ability)

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Luke Fickell

Pass share

39.7%

272 pass / 413 run

Plays / game

57.1

12 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

10.8%

249 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.

Coaching Lineage · 2025

1 coach
2025
Luke Fickell
Wisconsin

Played his entire career under Luke Fickell.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.

HometownRockwall, TX
Weight240 lb
Class4
PositionTE
Jersey86

Trophy Case · Confirmed honors

What the selectors said

1 entries
🎖

ALL-CONFERENCE

All-Conf mention (2025)

All-Big Ten

Trophy Case · Detail

Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.

All-Conference

1 all-conference honor

Conference-level recognition helps anchor whether a player is merely statistically loud or actually viewed as elite within his competitive lane.

Honors Timeline

Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.

Season Honor Scope Team / Selector Context
2025 All-Big Ten all_conference Wisconsin | Big Ten TE

Heisman By Year

Modeled rank and official finish by season.

Season Team Role Latest Model Forecast Win Finalist Official Finish Points Context
This player hasn’t appeared on a Heisman ballot tracked by the model.

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 Wisconsin Big Ten TE 4 No. 86 | 240 lb | Rockwall, TX