One day before Tennessee football is set to begin spring practice, the Vols lost another player to the transfer portal. Sean Brown became the fourth tight end on Rocky Top to put his name in since the end of the 2020 season, according to Patrick Brown of GoVols247.
The other three tight ends to enter the portal were Jordan Allen, Jackson Lowe and Austin Pope. Allen transferred to the Weber State Wildcats, and Lowe transferred to the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. Pope returned to UT and withdrew his name.
This all means that even with Pope back, Brown would be the third Tennessee football tight end to join another school if he did indeed land somewhere else. However, the move doesn’t give Josh Heupel and his coaching staff too much to worry about.
Jeremy Pruitt recruited heavily at tight end over a period of time, and Heupel still has plenty of options at the position. Pope alone is an option. He will be a senior this year along with Princeton Fant, who became an integral part of the passing game this past season.
What about the future, though? Well, Jacob Warren is still on the roster. The Pruitt added Miles Campbell and Trinity Bell to UT’s 2021 recruiting class. Simply put, even after 2021, Heupel already has three guys who can compete for the starting spot at tight end.
Given Heupel’s schemes, it’s not likely he ever uses more than one tight end on the field at a time. Pruitt’s desire to return to a pro-style and his hire of Jim Chaney meant that he was always going to want to find multiple tight ends so he could use them as extra blockers.
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In an offense designed around tempo, however, the tight end is always going to fit the mold of an extra receiver who can block if necessary. Brown always came across as more of a blocking tight end, so he’s a better fit for a pro-style to begin with.
As a result, with five guys already set to be in the rotation this year, four of whom are early enrollees for spring practice, Brown entering the portal is not much to worry about. There’s still the chance that Brown returns to Tennessee football anyway. As we already mentioned, Pope came back.
Of course, a reason for the transfer could also be how deep he knows the Vols are at the position when it comes to what Heupel is looking for there. If that is the case, it’s makes for even less of a reason to worry about the Vols’ situation at tight end.
Simply put, there are lots of players at the position already. It was always oddly deep for a unit that usually just has one starter. Pruitt and Chaney just had an affinity for size, and Pruitt had it for both sides of the ball.
Heupel returning Tennessee football to a different style makes Brown entering the portal likely nothing to worry about. He’ll still have options. As with every player who makes such a decision, fans should wish Brown the best.