#86

Lawson Albright

TE · Northwestern · Sr. · #86

Returning to Northwestern for 2026
This season's coverage starts August 26 — check back once kickoff hits.

Lawson Albright

TE · Northwestern · Sr · #86

Limited signal — not enough coverage for a story yet.

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
No recruit profile
CFB
College
Northwestern
2023–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Coaching Lineage · 2023–2025

1 coach
2023
Northwestern
2024
Northwestern
2025
Northwestern

Played his entire career under David Braun.

2025 snapshot

Season context · Team result + system

2023Northwestern8-5HC: David Braun · Run-leaning
2024Northwestern4-8HC: David Braun · Balanced, slow tempo
2025Northwestern7-6HC: David Braun · Run-leaning

Career stats

SeasonTeam
2025Northwestern9788.71--
2024Northwestern----------
2023Northwestern2126.00--
Career11908.21--

How he plays

Play style

Shows up in the passing game from any alignment.

CFB Index positional classification

2026 Outlook

Northwestern

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Tight end · Northwestern

Returning around him

  • 68% of 2024 offensive production back (Solid continuity)
  • 2 Northwestern players drafted to NFL
  • Transfer portal: +9 net (17 in / 8 out)

2026 Award watch

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

Northwestern · Last season: 7-6 · Talent rank #57 · 2026 recruiting class #52

DNA match

Player DNA

Complete TE

No single go-to route — the receiving numbers show up inline and split out alike.

TE

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Brandon Crum’s 2020 season.

Brandon Crum

85%match

South Alabama · 2020

#2

Jack Bradley

Rice · 2021

77%
#3

Drake Dabney

Baylor · 2021

77%
#4

Brenden Bates

Kentucky · 2022

76%
#5

D.C. Temple

Central Michigan · 2025

76%

Matches Brandon on

Weight
Height
Reception volume

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to Bentley Hanshaw's junior season at Liberty (2024).

Liberty · 2024

#2

Thomas Yassmin

Utah · 2023

83%
#3

Brenden Bates

Kentucky · 2022

82%
#4

Jake Clemons

Charlotte · 2023

82%
#5

Holden Staes

Tennessee · 2024

79%

Matches Bentley on

Yards / reception
TD rate
Weight

Heisman trajectory

Heisman Trajectory · 2025

Peak #1442

Final rank
#1621
Avg #1638.3
Finalist prob 0%

Peaked at #1442 this season.

Development

Development Trajectory · receiving yards

2023–2025
12.02023
78.02025

+550%

Up 550% from first season to most-recent.