Tennessee’s trip to Georgia Tech will come with a family tie that’s hard to miss.
For the first time in 40 years, the Vols will play at Bobby Dodd Stadium, and one of the more personal storylines sits on the coaching staffs. Tennessee wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator Kelsey Pope will be on the opposite sideline from his brother, Kyle Pope, who coaches defensive ends and outside linebackers for Georgia Tech.
Kelsey Pope said the matchup will mean something to the family, even if his attention is locked on Tennessee’s preparation.
“It’ll be fun,” Kelsey Pope said. “I think it’ll be something fun for our family.
I think they’ll probably enjoy it more than me. My focus right now is to get these guys in the room ready to go win one on the road.
I’m sure once we get to the back end of season, Christmas and all that stuff, it’ll be good memories. But just honestly, my focus is on the players right now.
It’s in a different spot. But it’ll be a cool moment.”
Kyle Pope has been on Brent Key’s staff at Georgia Tech since the 2024 season and has helped a young edge group take a step forward. Last season, Amontrae Bradford, A.J. Hoffler and Brayden Manley combined for 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
Before landing in Atlanta, Kyle Pope spent 2020-23 at Memphis as the defensive line coach, and he also served as the defensive run game coordinator in his final season there. In 2023, he added a stint as a training camp coaching intern for the Los Angeles Chargers.
His résumé also includes a year at Liberty in 2019 as inside linebackers coach, plus stops as a graduate assistant at Alabama from 2017-18 and as a defensive line coach at Holmes (Miss.) Community College in 2015 and Presbyterian in 2016.
Kyle Pope played at Jacksonville State from 2011-14, where he helped the Gamecocks win two Ohio Valley Conference championships and reach the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs in back-to-back seasons, making the quarterfinals in 2013 and the second round in 2014.
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Tennessee Must Deal With A Familiar Threat In Georgia Tech's Backfield
Georgia Techs season opener gave Tennessee another reminder that early nonconference games can still bring a familiar-looking challenge. Justice Haynes, who has already logged stops at Alabama and Michigan before landing in Atlanta for his senior season, made his first appearance for the Yellow Jackets last week and is now set to see Tennessee this weekend. For a Vols defense getting its first real look at Georgia Tech, the backfield will feature a runner with a well-traveled resume and the kind of experience that tends to show up quickly.
Josh Heupel didnt spend much time underselling what Haynes brings. He described him as dynamic and physical, with good vision, a combination that can make a back dangerous both between the tackles and once he gets a crease. That gives Tennessee another early test in a matchup where the Vols will need to be sharp against a runner who already has a feel for high-level football and is trying to make an immediate impact in his new home. [Read more 🡒]
Kelsey Pope Put Tennessee Receivers Through A Drill Fans Need To See
Tennessees wide receivers have spent part of the offseason working through a drill that looks more like a stunt than a standard practice rep. Under receivers coach Kelsey Pope, the group has been wearing eye patches while going through catching work, a twist designed to sharpen focus and force the kind of hand-eye coordination that normal drills can take for granted. The Vols have also mixed in tennis balls, adding another layer to a routine built around tougher, quicker reactions.
Kelsey Popes approach fits into a broader tradition of coaches finding unusual ways to challenge receivers, including the Dallas Cowboys use of beekeeper masks in similar training exercises. For Tennessee, the goal is simple enough even if the method looks odd: make routine catches feel less routine before the real pressure hits. Fans may not see the payoff until the fall, but the offseason work already has a way of standing out. [Read more 🡒]
Arion Carters Return Adds Intrigue To Tennessees First Road Test
Tennessee heads to Bobby Dodd Stadium on Sept. 12 for its first road test of the season against Georgia Tech, with the matchup set for ESPN as Josh Heupel continues sorting through the early-season details that come with a team still forming its identity. One of the most notable pieces of that picture is Arion Carter, whose presence around the program has carried added weight as the Volunteers prepare for a game that will say plenty about where they stand away from home.
Heupel recently addressed the way Tennessee handled leadership during Carters NCAA suspension, noting that Carter served as the teams sole captain while sidelined. The suspension came after an agent paid for a flight during the pre-draft process, and Carter now returns with another layer of motivation, planning to donate money to cancer-related charities based on his defensive performance this season. For Tennessee, it is a reminder that this opening stretch is about more than just travel and opponent prep, with Carters return adding a personal and competitive subplot to a meaningful September test. [Read more 🡒]