Keenan Pili named a game captain for No. 11 Tennessee against No. 7 Alabama
Tennessee redshirt senior linebacker Keenan Pili will be a game captain on Saturday afternoon against Alabama. The Vols on Friday announced Pili, Omari Thomas, Bru McCoy, Cooper Mays and Matthew Salansky as the team’s five captains for the Third Saturday in October showdown at Neyland Stadium.
Pili suffered a season-ending torn ACL on just his second play of the game last week in the 23-17 overtime win over Florida. It’s the second straight season Pili had his season cut short by injury. A tricep injury in the season-opening win over Virginia last year ended his first season with the Vols.
No. 11 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1 SEC) hosts No. 7 Alabama (5-1, 2-1) in a 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time start Saturday (TV: ABC) at Neyland Stadium.
‘Thank you for treating me as family and giving me a place I can always call home’
Pili, a BYU transfer, posted a statement on social media Wednesday thanking Tennessee fans and addressing his coaches and his teammates on social media. Pili captioned the post with “BEAT BAMA”:
Vol Nation —
To my brothers, coaches and staff, thank you for helping me become a better man on and off the field. Let’s go finish what we started!
To my family, wife and baby boy on the way, thank you for sacrificing for me to live my dream. I hope I made you proud.
To Tennessee, friends and fans, thank you for treating me as family and giving me a place I can always call home. Your love and support has been felt during this time.
To the game of football, I don’t know what the future holds, but thank you for a lifetime of memories I will cherish and never forget.
As hard and confusing as life may be, I thank my Father in Heaven for allowing me to play this game, and I trust in His Plan.
Same book, new chapter.
— Keenan Pili
Pili tied for the Tennessee team lead with 29.0 tackles in six games
Pili is tied with Will Brooks as Tennessee’s leading tackler through the first six games of the season, with 29.0 total tackles (11 solo, 18 assists), including 1.5 tackles for loss. He also has two quarterback hits.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Haynes King out
GT without star QB vs. Notre Dame
- 2
Judkins surgery
Ohio State RB's timeline revealed
- 3New
Georgia lands 5-star
Elijah Griffin makes the call
- 4
Tony Bennett explains
UVA legend emotional about retirement
- 5
Saban jabs Finebaum
Nick Saban kept receipts
He had a season-high 10 tackles in Tennessee’s 19-14 loss at Arkansas. Pili had five tackles at Oklahoma, three tackles against Kent State, four against North Carolina State and two in the opener against Chattanooga. He had 0.5 tackles for loss against NC State and 1.0 at Oklahoma.
Pili transferred to Tennessee from BYU before last season, but he was injured in the season-opening win over Virginia at Nissan Stadium in Nashville and was lost for the season.
“I’m not sure there’s a better representative of what a Volunteer is than Keenan Pili,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said Saturday night. “You talk about a selfless guy that cares about the people around him way more than he cares about himself.
“That’s an elite competitor, great leader, tough as nails, athletic, explosive, everything that you want. Just he’s a dude, man. Special dude.”
