Change is hard. Doing something different can be difficult. It’s much easier to continue on the path you’re on, if that path is leading somewhere good.
But sometimes a change is needed and different path that’ll take you to greater heights is taken. That explains the reasoning for why Caleb Odom spent a good portion of his preseason press conference Wednesday talking about his position change.
Ole Miss is shifting him from wide receiver to tight end, but the way he talks about the move makes it clear he sees it as an expansion of what he already does well.
Last season, Odom caught 22 passes for 312 yards and two touchdowns while lining up mostly as a wideout. He was a long, athletic target who created mismatches in space. Now he’ll be doing many of the same things, just from a different spot on the field.
“I definitely knew I would be in that tight end role, but I don’t know if you can really put a label on it, to be honest,” Odom said after Wednesday’s practice.
He’s not wrong. His skill set has always stretched across positions. He can line up outside, inside, attached to the formation or split out wide. He can block, he can run, he can catch.
The move to tight end is less about changing who he is and more about giving Ole Miss more ways to use him.
“I take pride in my skill set and being able to play receiver, play outside, play inside, play tight end and block just like a 260‑pound tight end can,” he said. “I’m trying to take pride in being able to do all of those things.”
That versatility is the fun part. The hard part is the learning curve. Tight ends have to know the route tree, the run game rules and the blocking angles that don’t always show up in the play call. It’s a position built on nuance, and Odom has spent the offseason learning all of it.
“Now there are certain things that tight ends have to know that maybe aren’t said in certain play calls,” he said. “You have to know certain rules for blocking and things like that that aren’t really talked about in the play call.”
That’s where the growth is happening. Odom isn’t just memorizing assignments. He’s learning the why behind them. He’s learning how the offensive line works, how the running back’s path affects his leverage and how small details can win a rep even when the defender is bigger or stronger.
That’s also where tight ends coach Cody Woodiel comes in.
“He has made me focus more on the little details,” Odom said. “That includes my hand placement in the run game, hat placement, understanding leverage and really learning what the offensive line is doing instead of only knowing my assignment.”
Those details matter. They’re what separate a tight end who can survive from one who can actually change a game. And for the first time, Odom has had a full offseason to focus on them.
“It has been really beneficial being able to hone in on my footwork, hand placement and the things that make a good tight end a good tight end,” he said.
The position may be new, but the role isn’t.
Odom is still a pass catcher, still a matchup problem and still one of the more intriguing pieces in the offense.
Now he’s adding the tight end toolbox to everything he already does well, and with months of focused work behind him, he looks like someone ready to make the most of it.
