Jon Sanders. Ashlon Adams. James Coleman. Jordan Goco. Elijah Brown.

These are the archetypes for Austin Peay football tight ends over the past 20-plus years. Big, good route runners, can make a guy miss (or run straight through them) and find the end zone if you get them the ball. But in reality, the bulk of their jobs were devoted to tearing the faces off blitzing safeties or power blocking linebackers into the core of the earth.

The fact is, tight ends have only occasionally factored into the passing game for Austin Peay over the years as much more than decoys and checkdown options. As recently as 2013, Austin Peay tight ends accounted for all of two receptions over the course of an entire season.

(Try to guess. Answers at the end of the story. We do have fun here, don't we?)

The history of the position in Clarksville makes Jackson Head's performance Saturday even more impressive. The junior from Woodstock, Georgia didn't just have a career day with seven catches for 132 yards and a score against Abilene Christian; he had a program-defining day for tight ends, becoming the first tight end with 100 yards receiving in a single game since Daniel Herndon in 1999 against Virginia-Wise.

I mean—132 yards for a tight end in one game? There was a three-year stretch from 2017-19 where an Austin Peay tight end didn't pick up 100 yards for the season. This is altogether different territory.

Head got the job done in a variety of ways, Saturday. His first catch of the day set the tone – a wheel up the right sideline that saw him turn and plant a would-be tackler in the turf. His second, a short outlet he used his speed to turn into a 13-yard gain to move the Govs near midfield on a late-second quarter drive. Lest anyone run away with the idea that Head was the beneficiary of deep finds where all he had to do was secure the ball and fall down, au contraire – he showed off his speed on multiple occasions Saturday, turning short gains into chunk plays with his athleticism.

Head's third catch was the big one – a 43-yard catch and run that ended with Head hurdling a tackler inside the Abilene Christian 10-yard line to set up the first of four second-half touchdowns for the Govs. Quarterback Chris Parson kept the play alive with his feet, scrambling left before hitting Head coming across the formation; he raced down the left sideline for the longest reception by an Austin Peay tight end in at least four seasons.

(We say at least four because it would be remiss not to mention Eugene Minter, who was capable of lining up at tight end or wide receiver and routinely turned in plays of 50-plus yards.)

Head had endless praise for his quarterback seeking and finding him throughout the game.

"Sometimes things work out like that," he said. "I think Chris just did a good job getting through his reads and that ended up with me getting the ball sometimes."

The fourth quarter was his opus, beginning with a 27-yard catch in heavy traffic to set up another Austin Peay touchdown. On the Govs' final drive, Head caught his final three passes – for five and12 yards on a tight end screen to take the ball down to the Wildcats' three and then a six-yard touchdown reception amidst heavy coverage for Austin Peay's final score.

"Chris has tremendous confidence in Jackson, and Jackson is a special player, a captain for us," said Austin Peay head coach Jeff Faris. "He's worked his tail off and grown as a leader. Coach [Quinn] Billerman does a great job getting the ball to our playmakers, and you could see that on the screens. He made some spectacular plays and kept fighting from the first play to the last. Jackson Head did some really good things today."

Head came to Austin Peay from Gardner-Webb, where injury and coaching change left him adrift. He's now found a home in Clarksville, and if Saturday is any indication, he's just getting scratching the surface of what he can do for the Govs in pursuit of a title.

The final score did not favor the Govs, which muted the excitement ever-so-slightly for Head; individual accolades are nice but the goal is getting the W each week. Despite the final score, the season remains filled with promise for Head and the Govs.

"We have a chance to be special," he said. "There's no reason that we should not be the best team in this conference. And unfortunately, this past Saturday did not show that. We made some mistakes and did some stuff we have to clean up. I know that our locker room and our coaches don't have any change in belief of what we could be and we're going to keep working to be exactly that."

(Oh, and the answers to the earlier question? Brandon Prince and Rip Rowan, the latter of whom is now an assistant defensive line coach for the Las Vegas Raiders.)