After a slow start, Dylan Collie came on to have a solid junior season for Oak Ridge High.

As the team’s secondary receiver, Collie hauled in 42 passes for 543 yards and eight touchdowns. On the other side of the field, Willie Tucker made 55 catches for 1,257 yards and 14 touchdowns, the team’s deep ball threat to Collie’s role as the underneath, possession receiver.

This year Collie, who has accepted a scholarship to attend Brigham Young University next fall, the same school where his dad, Scott, and two brothers, Zac and Austin, also attended, will be the go-to guy when quarterback Jason Samuels drops back to throw the ball.

In the mold of his brother, Austin, a receiver for the Indianapolis Colts, Collie, 17, is 5-feet, 11-inches tall and weighs 175 pounds. He doesn’t possess exceptional speed, but by no means is he slow. He runs exceptional patterns and has an excellent set of hands, catching most every ball thrown his way.

“I’ve been playing with Dylan since I was 8 and I’m happy for all that he’s accomplished,” Oak Ridge senior linebacker and running back Preston Dean said. “He’s got great hands and can catch balls in traffic.”

Collie has put his time in since last season ended, working out with Matt Lefevre four to five times a week, strengthening his core muscles and becoming a more explosive athlete, while also doing running workouts on hills. After working hard last offseason to be the best high school player he could be, this offseason he’s worked to become the best collegiate receiver he can be.

“I have the ability to step up and contribute at the Division I level so that’s how I prepared this offseason with the help of my dad, Zac and Austin,” Dylan said. “I took my workouts to a whole new level.”

Collie wasn’t pleased with his performance early last season, but was happy to finish the season strongly.

“I didn’t have much confidence in myself early and knew I needed to step up my game,” Collie said. “By the time (we got into league) and we played Sheldon, Pleasant Grove and Folsom, I played really well and I’m looking to build off that and make a big impact this season.”

One thing benefitting Collie this year is that he’s under far less pressure. With his future taken care of by accepting the scholarship to BYU, he’s not out to impress college coaches with the hope of getting a scholarship offer because he’s already got one.

“I can just go out and have fun and when I do that I play a lot better,” Collie said.

Collie has set high goals for himself. Besides helping his team to a long playoff run, he wants to make the All-Metro team and hopefully the All-State team. He also would like to make a run at Oak Ridge receiving records set by his brother, Austin, and Tucker.

“I don’t want to say that Dylan is going to put up numbers like Willie did last year, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he did because he’s that level of player,” Oak Ridge coach Eric Cavaliere said.

Cavaliere went on to say that Collie contributes more to the team than statistics.

“Dylan’s got great leadership qualities and is a positive force on the team. He plays hard and he plays with a smile. He’s got a great football attitude.”