3-star Seneca Valley TE Adam Gehm on commitment to Vanderbilt football: ‘They’re not going to limit me’
Adam Gehm’s receiving numbers won’t jump off the page, but his athletic traits certainly caught the attention of Power Four football schools the last few years.
Gehm, a rising senior tight end at Seneca Valley, announced his commitment to Vanderbilt on June 5 after a nearly two-year recruitment.
The 6-foot-5 1/2 (he stressed the half inch jokingly), 225-pound Gehm picked Vandy after an official visit this summer; he was also closely considering Northwestern and Louisville, but after visiting the Nashville, Tenn., school, he picked the Commodores.
“When they offered me back in November, it really was one of my top options just because it was a huge opportunity, and being in the SEC is a big thing,” he said. “It’s been one of my best relationships, and I think it’s a great fit for me.
“It just felt right.“
Gehm is a three-star prospect according to 247Sports and the Class of 2026’s No. 31 ranked player in Pennsylvania. He held offers from 19 Division I programs, according to 247.
Vanderbilt went 7-6 last season in a resurgent year for what’s been historical an SEC also-ran, beating Alabama in the regular season and then Georgia Tech in the Birmingham Bowl. Gehm is eager to work in the same TE room that has produced Eli Stowers and Cole Spence, who could be among the best pairings at the position in the nation this season.
His verbal commitment puts a bow on a two-year stretch in which Gehm battled stress fractures in both feet and still played — he’s had surgeries to each offseason to correct the injuries — and still performed at a high level as an in-line tight end in the Raiders’ offense that asked him to primarily block. He said he had about 10 catches for 100 yards and a touchdown last year.
Now healthy, he also expects to play defensive end again this season after playing just tight end as a junior.
Gehm said Vandy’s coaches, particularly his future tight ends coaches, believe he’s a good fit in their two-TE system that also requires an in-line blocker. They want him to add about 30 pounds when he gets to college, but they also won’t box him in as just a blocker if he develops more as a receiver.
“Getting a lot of that on film really just opened eyes … with what I can do in that position,” Gehm said. “They’re not going to limit me to just that if I grow as a player (into more of a pass catcher).”
Gehm is entering his first and only season under new Seneca Valley head coach Don Barclay, who was hired in February to take over for Ron Butschle. Barclay, an SV alumnus and former NFL offensive lineman, is already leaving an impression on Gehm.
“Immediately we’ve already started incorporating a lot of tight end plays (like flat routes, overs, pop passes),” he said. “Some of the plan is to give me the ball eight or 10 times a game.”
Gehm said the Raiders have hit the offseason harder than past years, too, and there’s a strong returning core of about eight starters on each side of the ball ready to improve on a disappointing 3-7 campaign last fall that included a first-round loss in the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs.
Heat acclimatization begins Aug. 4, and Seneca Valley opens the 2025 season Aug. 22 at Bethel Park.
