Tennessee linebacker Keenan Pili announces his return to the Vols in 2024
Tennessee transfer linebacker Keenan Pili announced his return for the 2024 season on social media on Friday. The redshirt senior and BYU transfer was lost to what proved to be a season-ending injury in the season-opening win over Virginia on September 2.
“Thank you for accepting me into the family here in Knoxville,” Pili wrote. “Let’s run it back in 2024!”
Pili finished the Virginia game with four tackles, including two solo tackles. He earned a game ball after the win, after playing 30 snaps, fourth most on the team. His 80.0 grade from Pro Football Focus was also fourth highest for the Vols in Week 1.
“Keenan’s got a lot of good football ahead of him,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said in October. “He’ll have to make a decision on what’s best for him and his family.”
GBO pic.twitter.com/cXgzj0RrCJ
— Keenan Pili (@KeenanPili7) December 8, 2023
Keenan Pili is second Tennessee senior to announce return for 2024 season
Pili is the second Tennessee senior to announce his return to the Vols, following offensive tackle John Campbell doing so earlier this week.
Campbell spent five years at Miami before transferring to Tennessee. He started the first 10 games of the season for the Vols at left tackle before dealing with an injury over the final three weeks of the regular season. He has started 27 times in 43 career games, including 18 starts in 34 games at Miami.
The 6-foot-3, 233-pound Pili spent the last four years at BYU. He had 191 tackles in 34 career games at BYU, including 62 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and 1.0 sacks in 12 games last season. He had 13.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks during his time with the Cougars.
Josh Heupel: ‘Obviously we feel like he’s a difference maker’
Heupel said in October that Pili was “fighting his butt off to get back as soon as possible.”
“And obviously we feel like he’s a difference maker,” he said at the time.
Pili, a native of Provo, Utah, was a three-star prospect in the 2016 recruiting cycle out of Timpview High School. He was ranked No. 107 among linebackers in the class and No. 12 overall in the state of Utah.
While sidelined with the Vols, Pili took on the role of helping develop Tennessee’s younger linebackers that played in his place.
“Our young guys are continuing to step up at that position,” Heupel said earlier this season, “but Keenan’s a special leader and he still has been even while he has been out.
“He’s one of the first ones in the building constantly watching film. I think he’s been a real help to the young guys that are out there on the football field.”
