Panthers sign former college basketball player who’s attempting to make the transition to NFL tight end

The Carolina Panthers are taking a flier on a rookie center. Basketball center that is. The team announced Monday that it had signed Coastal Carolina center Colin Granger, who will try to make the transition to tight end.

Granger is automatically the tallest player on Carolina’s roster, coming in at 6-feet-9 and 225 pounds. This past season with the Chanticleers, Granger shot 57.9% from the field while averaging 7.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. The Georgia native started his college basketball career at Ohio University before transferring to Western Carolina in 2022 and then Coastal Carolina in 2024. 

Granger joins a tight end room that includes Tommy Tremble, Ja’Tavion Sanders, James Mitchell, Jordan Matthews and Dominique Dafney. Basketball players making the switch from the hardwood to the gridiron is not unheard of. Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez are two of the well-known former college basketball players who developed into star tight ends, and now, Granger will get a shot.