Tennessee trio of Miles Kitselman, Arion Carter and Bryson Eason heading to SEC Media Day

Tennessee will have its talking day in Atlanta at SEC Media Days next Tuesday. Head coach Josh Heupel and three Vols will spent the afternoon making their rounds to media from around the country. 

The three players joining Heupel will be tight end Miles Kitselman, linebacker Arion Carter and defensive tackle Bryson Eason. 

Kitselman and Carter are returning from off-season surgeries that sidelined Carter for all of spring and Kitselman for most of spring. Both have been clear leaders since the end of last season. 

Kitselman was one of the biggest surprised for the Vols last season. The transfer from Alabama was kind of an after thought when he chose Tennessee. Most saw him as a depth piece, but he emerged as the Vols most consistent and dependable offensive players in 2024. Kitselman had 22 catches for 301 yards and four touchdowns. Kitselman thought the ’24 season was his final season in college, but the judges ruling in the Diego Pavia case gave Kitselman, a former junior college player another year of eligibility. 

Kitselman played two seasons at Alabama before transferring to Tennessee. In 19 games with the Crimson Tide he caught just two passes for 18 yards, with both catches coming during the 2022 season. 

Kitselman, a native of Lyndon, Kansas, played at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas in 2021. He was a three-star prospect after playing on both the offensive and defensive line at Lyndon High School in Kansas. 

Carter was Tennessee’s leading tackler a season ago finishing with 68 tackles including 6.5 for loss, an interception, 6 PBU’s and 3 quarterback hurries.

Carter has been one of the Vols most vocal leaders and one of the most dedicated workers over the last two seasons in Knoxville. The in-state native has transitioned well from high school running back to linebacker.

“The element that he has, something that you can’t coach, is his speed and his quickness,” linebackers coach William Inge said. “He is elusive when he’s on the football field, almost like a cheetah. So it’s great to have a linebacker that can move like that, but have the body that he has from a physical nature. So he’s someone we’re going to be able to really utilize in the days, years, and games to come.”

Eason will be the third representative for Tennessee in Atlanta next week. The Memphis native is one of the biggest personalities on the roster and has great passion for Tennessee and the college game which is a big reason why he’s back for his final season. Eason did go through senior day festivities last November, but ultimately decided to return for another year. Eason had 24 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, and sack and a half. Veteran defensive line coach Rodney Garner has seen Eason continuing to mature which excites Garner who has always raved about Eason’s talent. 

“Every year I’ve been here, he’s one of the more gifted kids, that we have, but just seeing him being, I guess, more attentive to doing the little things right,” Garner said back in the spring. “He is a talented guy. everybody when they writing him up and the scouts and the coaches and all that, his talent jumps out. But there’s a lot of things that he needs to clean up in his game and for him to come out, at least be focused on fixing certain things that we’ve talked about that’s been encouraging. 

“To me, that’s showing that he’s maturing and that’s showing that he’s growing as a man that he’s taking that serious.”