3-star tight end Colston Loveland includes Arizona in top 7

Production on the field will be the real determinant, but a strong sign that Arizona is committed to making the tight end a bigger part of its offense might be coming from the recruiting trail.

Colston Loveland, a 3-star tight end from Idaho, has listed the Wildcats among a top 7 along with Alabama, ASU, Boise State, Colorado, Michigan and Oregon State.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Loveland is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 556 player in the 2022 recruiting class, as well as the 28th-best tight end in the country and the No. 1 prospect from Idaho.

A former wide receiver, Loveland has bulked up the last few years to move closer to the ball and it has resulted in a huge bump in exposure. His past two seasons he has caught 160 passes for 1,963 yards with 19 touchdowns.

Here are some of his junior season highlights:

Loveland has scheduled officials visits in June to ASU and Oregon State, two of the first schools to offer him. Arizona extended its offer in January, shortly after Jordan Paopao was hired as tight ends coach.

The UA has six commitments in the 2022 class, the most recent being 3-star quarterback Noah Fifita. It signed one tight end in the 2021 class in Colby Powers, a converted quarterback.