KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After boasting three wideouts with 800-plus yards receiving yards last season, Tennessee’s deep room of pass catchers will look to raise the bar once again in 2026.
Led by the returning duo of Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews, who both racked up over 800 yards in 2025, the Vols’ wide receiver room has the potential to be one of the most productive in the country yet again.
While they continue to hone their craft and improve on the field, what has made pass game coordinator/wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope most proud is the strides Matthews and Staley have taken as leaders.
“I’m more proud of those two probably more than anybody that I’ve coached in terms of leadership,” Pope said. “Those guys are coaching each other up, they’re coaching others up, and they’re holding a standard. They’re not afraid of conflict with the other guys.
“They had an off day recently, and Mike and Bray led the entire group in a walkthrough and an install, on their own. So obviously, those guys are self-confident and comfortable within themselves, but to be a productive receiver in the SEC, and still not be entitled and arrogant? I think that’s hard to do nowadays.”
Staley was the SEC Freshman of the Year and also named a Freshman All-American in 2025 after leading all freshmen in the league in receptions (68), yards (837) and touchdowns (six) while ranking second among FBS freshmen in catches and yards.
Matthews also enters this season with high expectations after finishing last year as UT’s third-leading receiver. The Lilburn, Georgia, native, hauled in 53 receptions for 813 yards and four touchdowns during his sophomore campaign and has had an impressive offseason as he prepares to take on an even larger role in 2026.
Preseason camp has also brought plenty of intrigue about who will emerge as Tennessee’s third starter out wide after the departure of 2025 Biletnikoff Award semifinalist and third-team All-American Chris Brazzell II to the NFL.
Pope, who is beginning his fifth season as UT’s wide receivers coach, certainly has no shortage of options to choose from. Sophomore returners Radarious Jackson, Travis Smith Jr. and Joakim Dodson are all pushing for bigger roles this season after limited opportunities as freshmen in 2025.
Freshman TK Keys has also used this preseason camp to showcase his immense talent and potential. The former five-star recruit of out Hattiesburg, Mississippi picked Tennessee over a multitude of major programs and has the ability to make an immediate impact in his debut season with the Big Orange.
With the plethora of talented playmakers at his disposal, Pope said the main thing he’s looking for from the group right now is consistency. He is also eager to see how his group handles the moment as the team prepares for its first preseason scrimmage on Saturday inside of Neyland Stadium.
“I think going in the stadium, Neyland is a cool resource for us because it’s imposing. You go in there and it feels like this is important, so that kind of adds pressure which translates to game day. So for me, it’s just like, ‘who is the moment not too big for?’
“You go into Neyland a lot of times and guys look completely different from what they’ve done on the practice field because that’s an imposing place. Well, we’re going to play there and there’s going to be 100,000 more people in there when we get there. Who’s not afraid of the moment?”
A full transcript of Pope’s Friday press conference can be found below.
Pass Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach Kelsey Pope (Aug. 14)
On Joakim Dodson’s kick return touchdown in the Music City Bowl creating a spark going into this season…
“I think those types of moments, they definitely add to confidence. But I think ultimately as players, you have to choose to use that and take advantage of that momentum. Jo (Joakim Dodson) has done that so far in camp. For him, just coming off the offseason, individually his biggest focus for me was just to be more consistent. We have to be able to really add value in the run game for the position that he plays. So, coming off of that touchdown, I think he has done that and tried to take advantage of that momentum. He’s had a solid camp so far.”
On Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley feeling established after last season…
“I think the key to having that edge is not saying what you just said, ‘feeling established’. Right? Like at any moment, once they feel like ‘I have arrived,’ that’s the wrong mentality. What I think I have to do as a coach is gauge that. If I sense one of them or both of them looking too far ahead or ‘feeling established,’ I have to nip that in the bud right now. I think what I have gotten from both of those guys this camp is two hungry guys that have been ready to strain and compete every single play. We put Mike (Mike Matthews) up in the team meeting, offensive unit meeting, for about four plays, and he didn’t touch the ball on either one of them. But it’s his effort, his strain and the way he is competing without the ball. Braylon (Braylon Staley) and Mike, both of those guys had success. I’m talking to them about becoming complete receivers. We aren’t talking about going over 1,000 yards, knocking out 10 touchdowns, these milestones or accolades when it comes to numbers. What we want to focus on is being complete wideouts, and I think all the other things, success, that stuff will come.”
On Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley’s to-do list from the summer…
“They have different skill sets, so I think for one, it’s important for those guys to identify what their superpower is. Once you go to the next level, you have to be able to translate into an NFL system right away, right? So understanding what my superpower is and no matter on what day, what the weather looks like or how I am feeling, that has to be concrete and constant. And then, it’s time to check off things that I need to get better at. For Mike, it was about him playing with lower pad level – whether that’s release, top of the routes or any of that stuff – and also just finishing catches, contested catches. The hardest ones are when I am by myself, but I think he struggled a lot with catches. Not because he had a hand-eye coordination issue. It was just a focus issue. Like, it could be things in my eyesight that could distract me, and I lose focus. So, trying to put him in those situations. And for Braylon, his superpower was, he has to be able to separate at every level. He’s got to be the best separator in the conference. In the country, right? And so, that’s got to be constant no matter who we play. You add on to that, things that he had to get better at was just playing with more physicality in the run game. When guys want to press me, I’m able to play with physicality in the pass game and also start making those 50-50 catches. Deep balls, jump-ball situations, getting used to those. What you do is you talk to them, you compile a detailed plan, and you have checkpoints that you can see and tell periodically, are we on the path? Are we making momentum? Are we making leeway to where we want to get to? I think those guys, both are trending in the right direction.”
On the competitiveness from Radarious Jackson…
“Radarious has always got the right mentality, man. He’s usually the hardest worker in the receiver room. You don’t have to really get a fire lit under him for him to get started. I’m telling all these guys, we have to play well under the lights. We’re going to play a lot of teams in this league that are really good, so my focus for these guys is: in games where we have to be perfect, will you be able to? Because it’s easy to say, ‘Man, strain and live with the results.’ Well in this league we play, effort doesn’t get you results a lot of times. In situations where we have to be perfect – third down, two-minute, any of the situations – when we go into that stadium, it’s no different. You guys have to perform, right? And so, putting pressure on those guys to make sure mentally and physically, they’re ready to go and do just that when we go under the lights. It’s not just Radarious, but all those guys, I’m trying to get clued into that. Like, we have to play well in the stadium.”
On evaluating the wide receiver room and what he is looking for as pass game coordinator…
“As far as the coordinator thing, I’m really looking for things that we may not have had answers to last year. You look at different looks or games you feel like you struggled, or even games where you felt like you may have scored a lot of points, so we were good productively, and we just felt like we could have had a new wrinkle. I think being able to add onto those, to where it still is within your identity. For me as a pass game coordinator, those are the things I’m usually paying attention to, to help keep us balanced on our offense.”
On getting the wide receivers to show effort and finish every play…
“You have to want to. You have to remind these guys of their goals, dreams and why they are here. We do a segment called, ‘Word of the Day,’ and I ask the guys a question. A couple of practices ago, ‘What do you need to be reminded of when you’re tired?’ You get a wide array of different answers. One guy is like, ‘Coach, I need to be reminded about me and my mom and siblings, we were staying in a homeless shelter when I was seven and eight years old.’ Another guy, his answer is, ‘Man, I need to be reminded that my mom is in the hospital back home and I’m the only one that she can depend on.’ It’s got to be a want to. You have to be inspired, even when you don’t feel like it. I think that’s part of (being) a coach, is you have to know the guys that are in your room, so you can press those buttons when they need to be. For him, (Mike Matthews) is a naturally motivated kid. For him, it’s just putting things into perspective. Sometimes he’s too motivated, right? Like, one bad play can kind of get him in his head. For him as he’s growing, talking to him about letting go of that one and playing the next one, and you’ll be way more productive than you just honing in and compartmentalizing on one play.”
On Travis Smith Jr.’s best qualities and how he can play an impactful role…
“Physical. Travis has to be the most physical guy in my room. Just like you, everybody who comes to our practice, the first thing they ask is, who is number one? Because physically, he’s imposing. He looks like Goliath. And my message to him is, ‘You never want to look like Goliath and play like Jane.’ You want to be physical the entire time. We have to go be that, right? And for Travis, he’s got to work at it because it doesn’t come naturally to him, but he’s done a really good job of embracing physicality. And you’ve started to see him kind of turn that corner and play physical. For him, it’s just doing it consistently. But that’s my message to him, is go be the most physical guy in the room. And he wants to. He absolutely wants to.”
On finding the best third receiving option…
“Still searching. We have to get consistent right now, so it’s literally a search. If you know somebody, you let me know. It’s wide open right now. And for me, it’s just consistency daily. Not being up and down, and that’s what I’m getting from a bunch of guys right now.”
On where TK Keys stands in that competition for a starting role…
“He’s right in the mix. He’s right in the mix. So between anybody in the room, really – if they can breathe and they’re in that room, that third spot’s open for them. And right now, it’s wide open. I got guys some days who are peaking, and then the next we go down, but right now I’m still looking. We have to show consistency. For me, as a receivers coach, I have to be able to put my name and stamp on the guy when we put them on the field. If we only have one guy that can play, we’re playing freaking 13 personnel. We have two? We’ll go 12. If we got three, we’ll play an 11, but it has to be earned.”
On the importance of practicing in Neyland Stadium and what Neyland can reveal about a player in scrimmages and games…
“I think going in the stadium, Neyland is a cool resource for us because it’s imposing. You go in there and it feels like this is important, so that kind of adds pressure which translates to game day. So for me, it’s just like, ‘Who is the moment not too big for?’ You go into Neyland a lot of times and guys look completely different from what they’ve done on the practice field because that’s an imposing place. Well, we’re going to play there and there’s going to be 100,000 more people in there when we get there. Who’s not afraid of the moment? Some guys get in there, and the game just looks sped up for them. You see the play snapped and their eyes are all over the place, they’re not going through the progressions, pass game, run game, whatever. That kind of indicates that this feels like everything’s moving too fast for them. You see some, they go in and they cut it loose, and they make play after play, they’re asking for more. That’s when you know guys are ready.
“They’ll show. When a guy’s ready, you’ll know. Part of my job also as the coach, is I have to kind of push them into uncomfortable situations. Two-minute drill, a guy might be tapping (his helmet) because he’s tired. As a coach, a lot of times, I want to leave you in and see what you’re made of when you’re tired and if you’ll strain. Now, I have to pick and choose when I do that to make sure it’s not harmful for them physically, but part of that is on me as a coach to make sure I’m putting them in situations to show that the moment’s not too big.”
On TK Keys’ talent upside versus his ‘freshman moments’…
“The kid is gifted. We knew that coming into it, and we knew that when we evaluated him. The highs you see. I’m sure you guys saw the clip on Twitter, the catch. He just does stuff that you can’t coach. Now, you go to the opposite end, and some days it looks like polar opposite. From a pad level standpoint, the eyes, during the play what I’m talking about, he just looks sped up at times and not understanding progressions. Part of that is being a freshman, right? You understand there’s going to be ups and downs as freshmen, but what you never want to coach is a guy’s ability to strain and compete, and that’s what he’s constantly doing. He’s always competing, even if he’s in the wrong spot. But my message to him, just like those other guys, is, ‘If you want to do this, no matter who you are, how talented you are, you have to be consistent.’ And that’s what we’re focusing on with him.”
On how Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley have emerged as leaders of the receiver room…
“I say those two guys, I’m more proud of those two probably more than anybody that I’ve coached in terms of leadership. When Mike Matthews got here, he was highly recruited. He’ll tell you he was probably entitled in a lot of ways. And so, it was a lot of breaking scar tissue, building trust, and three or four talks a week it feels like. I spent more time talking to him on the week than I did my wife. And now to see, before I’m even coaching up another guy, Mike’s already sprinting to him. Or he had a deal today where his eyes weren’t in the right place, and we weren’t in the right spot when the ball was thrown, and before I could even say anything to him, ‘Coach, I know. I should have been there.’ And it’s like, no hesitation. Braylon is the same way. Those guys are coaching each other up, they’re coaching others up, and they’re holding a standard. They’re not afraid of conflict with the other guys. They had an off day recently, and Mike and Bray led the entire group in a walkthrough and an install, on their own. So obviously, those guys are self-confident and comfortable within themselves, but to be a productive receiver in the SEC, and still not be entitled and arrogant? I think that’s hard to do nowadays. So those two, kudos to those two. They’ve done a really good job of trying to uphold a standard that I’ve set, even when I’m not around. I’ve been really, really pleased with those two.”
