KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s tight ends continue to expand their role in the offense, while the defense looks to build on its progress as the No. 16/16 Volunteers prepare to host No. 8/7 Kentucky for Homecoming Saturday.
Tight ends coach Alec Abeln and co-defensive coordinator/secondary coach Anthony Poindexter met with the media Tuesday ahead of the 6:15 p.m. ET, Dark Mode kickoff at Neyland Stadium, discussing their position groups and the challenge posed by the SEC-leading Wildcats.
Abeln said Tennessee’s two-tight-end approach provides additional opportunities for young players while preparing them for the demands of the next level. With NFL offenses increasingly utilizing multiple tight ends, he views the system as an important recruiting advantage.
For sophomore DaSaahn Brame, the next step is continuing to play with confidence and speed in the passing game. Abeln praised Brame’s progress while emphasizing the importance of trusting his reads and attacking routes without hesitation.
“When he knows and is confident in what he’s doing, he plays to his real speed,” Abeln said. “When he doesn’t, that’s really the next step for him is to be playing full speed all the time in the route.”
Defensively, Poindexter said the secondary benefited from time away from the field during Tennessee’s bye week after an eight-week stretch of competition. The coaching staff has continued to manage individual workloads while ensuring players receive the preparation necessary to perform on Saturdays.
The Volunteers face a Kentucky offense led by head coach Will Stein, whose system Poindexter knows well after facing him in each of the past two seasons while Stein served as offensive coordinator at Oregon. He highlighted the Wildcats’ variety of personnel groupings, formations and tempos, along with their ability to avoid turnovers and capitalize on opponents’ mistakes.
Poindexter stressed the importance of remaining patient rather than trying to force game-changing plays.
“You can’t hunt plays, plays will come to you,” Poindexter said. “When you start hunting plays, you get in trouble.”
The Volunteers return to Neyland Stadium seeking their second consecutive home victory over a top-10 opponent, with Saturday’s matchup marking the 122nd meeting between Tennessee and Kentucky.
Full comments from Abeln and Poindexter’s Tuesday media availability can be viewed below.
Tennessee Football Press Conference | Nov. 3, 2026
Tight Ends Coach Alec Abeln
On setting up a two-tight-end system in recruitment…
“Yeah, I think first and foremost is more opportunities for young guys to play. Also, you look at the direction the NFL is headed, man, two tight end sets, getting prepared for that level, being asked to do a lot of things that those guys are doing, it’s a huge selling point for us. I think it’s been great.”
On how DaSaahn Brame has evolved in the passing game…
“I think it all ties together what defenses are presenting, obviously a lot of play action that matches with the running game. For him, the biggest challenge and the biggest step is playing fast in the route. I think there’s a lot of things in our offense where you get to find space, you get to be a winner because of the flexibility we give you. Some of that leads to overthinking at times or playing hesitant. I think the biggest challenge for him, man, when he knows and is confident in what he’s doing, he plays to his real speed. When he doesn’t, that’s really the next step for him, is to be playing full speed all the time on the route. I think he’s taken a lot of steps in that. I do still think there’s more out there. Again, it’s not lack of trying and it’s not lack of effort on his behalf. Sometimes you get different looks than what you’re anticipating. Sometimes it’s just the way the progression breaks. I do think he’s done a really good job and I hope to see more plays from him soon.”
On assisting in pass protection…
“I think last week and two weeks ago we did some good things, had some good pickups. I think, fundamentally, they’ve taken a lot of steps. We stole an indy period during the special teams period today and got some really good work. I think those guys have bought into it. The more you get comfortable doing it, the more you understand what you’re trying to do. You understand launch points. You understand alignments of the guys. The more comfortable you feel with it, the easier that stuff gets. I’ve been pleased. I think there’s still more meat on the bone there for sure.”
On placing DaSaahn Brame on goal line packages..
“We do a drill called goal-line tackle at camp in spring every year. It’s you on a free hat. His ability to produce and force momentum in a short space, he’s a powerful, twitched-up guy. He’s comfortable with the ball in his hand. It is bang-bang. I do feel like his skill set as a runner and being able to just go find you a yard when it’s that situation, I absolutely trust him to be able to do it.”
On challenges of Kentucky’s defense…
“They’re multiple. They’re well-coached. Guys do a good job playing through the echo of it. I think where maybe they aren’t on the best call, guys make it right for them. Where maybe one guy gets beat on the play, other guys, like, they play really complete defense where they don’t give you a whole lot of things. They’re multiple. They’re sound in their scheme. They do enough that’s different that challenges you in some ways and talks you out of certain things. But they’re well-coached. They play hard. They’ve got good players, and it’ll be a real challenge for us on Saturday.”
Co-Defensive Coordinator/Secondary Coach Anthony Poindexter
On the starting trio of Qua Moss, TJ Metcalf and Dejuan Lane having a recovery week…
“Well, I think everybody needed just a little bit of time off to recharge. You know, eight weeks is a long time, long stretch, but they got the rest that they needed, and I think everybody is ready to go down this home stretch.”
On managing the practice field in terms of workload…
“Well, some of that is above my pay grade. Coach Huep (Josh Heupel) does a good job with the practice and managing the time on the field, him and DO (Derek Owings). So, you just look at them, you know? I’ve been doing it for a long time. I know we have the GPSs and all of that kind of stuff, but you can tell when their legs are tired. You may take a rep or two off a rack or whatever, but these guys want to practice. They want to be ready to play in the games, so each player is different. Some players need to see all of the plays, some players don’t need to see as many, but I try to get them what they need. I’ve been with them for almost eight months, nine months now, so I kind of know them, and we just try to get them prepared to go on Saturdays.”
On Will Stein’s offense and what makes it effective…
“First off, they don’t beat themselves. As a head coach and as a program, you look at their stats; they don’t turn the ball over, they do turn the ball over with the opponent. He has, offensively, a lot of different personnel groups, a lot of different formations, he mixes up the tempos well, give you a lot of formations and stuff like that. So, you just have to be prepared, and it’s a lot of stuff that the kids have to be alert to, but he does a really good job. We faced him last year, and I faced him two years in a row, so he does a really good job.”
On what made Penn State successful on third down against Will Stein’s Oregon offense last year…
“It’s just you make plays. We call it money down for a reason, and guys stepped up and made plays, we just didn’t make enough to win the game. So, you have to make plays on third down, you have to get off the field on fourth down, so we know that going into the game, but you have to try to keep it in manageable distances.”
On how to make sure players don’t do too much to force mistakes from Kentucky’s offense…
“Like I tell the guys, you can’t hunt plays, plays will come to you. When you start hunting plays, you get in trouble. So, you have to try to (do it with) disguise and Coach (Jim) Knowles does a good job of mixing up the coverages. Hopefully, he’ll make a mistake, but you have to play good defense. You have to play sound, you have to play steady and just let the plays come to you. Like I said, he (Kenny Minchey) doesn’t turn the ball over a lot, the quarterback, so we just have to be patient, and at the end of the day, we just have to make stops. We have to get off the field on third down.”
On stress put on the safeties and nickel with Kentucky’s passing game…
“You just have to find these guys. Their tight end is really good, and they have a couple of good tight ends. Obviously, they have really good running backs and they’re good on the outside, so they’re complete, they’re a well-rounded team. You have to be prepared to cover all of these guys because any of them can get the ball and any of them can make plays at any time. So, it’s going to be a challenge, but the guys are preparing to be ready.”
On the overall improvement of the defense…
“I just think the understanding of what Coach (Jim) Knowles is looking for as far as the system and how we play. I think the guys are real comfortable each week when we come in with a game plan. They’re ready to digest it and be ready to execute it on Saturday, and they love playing in this defense. As long as you can keep that energy and they’re focused in their preparation, I think we’ll be all right on defense.”
