This was not a player I expected to have so high up on the list when Tennessee football hired Jeremy Pruitt back in December. Pruitt immediately brought in four-star junior college transfer Dominick Wood-Anderson at tight end.
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Him combined with the depth of other guys suggested that Eli Wolf would fall back in the depth chart. And when spring practice began, Wolf was struggling significantly. But the 6’4″ 236-pound younger brother of Ethan Wolf, who was the Vols’ leading receiver at tight end the last four years, made a dramatic improvement.
Eli Wolf became the most-improved player on the offense. He then was one of the three players to accompany Jeremy Pruitt to SEC Media Days. And now, heading into the season, he’s the top dog at tight end, a position that replaces last year’s top two guys on the depth chart in Wolf’s older brother and Jakob Johnson.
Pruitt has talked a lot about using multiple tight ends. Part of that is placing expectations on their versatility. Add in the fact that the Vols are using the fullback in practice, and there are more roles for the tight end than before.
As a result, Wolf has a great chance to carry the torch his brother left. That should allow him to burst onto the scene this year and become a major player. Helton will want to use his skills as much as possible, particularly since his size suggests he’s a bit more agile.
Simply put, the Vols are likely not going to lose a beat at tight end. And Wolf is probably a huge reason for that. Seeing so much more action will make him a major breakout player for Rocky Top throughout this season.