Tennessee football signed one of the top classes in the country during early signing day, which featured a trio of five-star prospects. This included the top-ranked wide receiver in the country, Tristen Keys.
Keys, out of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, ranks as the No. 10 recruit in the country on 247. As the top-ranked receiver in the class, expectations are that he could make an impact as soon as his true freshman season. With Chris Brazzell officially off to the NFL draft, there’s an opening on the outside that Keys could compete to fill next year.
To preview what Keys brings to the table, Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel spoke about his skill set during an appearance on The Mike Keith Show.
“He’s got the ability to be a dynamic playmaker, that’s the simplest way to say it,” Heupel said on The Mike Keith Show. “As a high school wide receiver, he’s really loose and fluid at the line of scrimmage. When he does see press coverage. Got great short-area quickness, the ability to go up and attack the football. He’s got a great catch radius, long arms, but can open up his back hip on a ball back behind him. He is going to be great in the short, the intermediate, in the downfield passing game. Really excited about him.”
Big time playmaker! @Tkgot5#RockyTop26 🍊 pic.twitter.com/0rgjT0lgze
— Josh Heupel (@coachjoshheupel) December 3, 2025
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Keys wasn’t always a Tennessee commit, though. Initially, he committed to Brian Kelly and LSU. However, Kelsey Pope and UT’s staff never gave up. The continued push resulted in landing the talent.
“Kelsey did a great job with him,” Heupel said. “Our staff did with TK. His family, dynamic wide receiver, super loose at the line of scrimmage. He has the ability to stretch it vertically but it has ball-in-hand value as well. He has the ability to go attack the football. Dynamic player that is really excited about being here at Tennessee and we’re excited to have him for sure.”
Now, Pope has gotten a raise and extension. On Friday, he was given a two-year deal that saw him earn the title of passing game coordinator on top of his wide receivers coach duties.
Pope will look to retain starters Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews after their breakout seasons. He’ll also look to keep freshmen Travis Smith Jr. and Radarious Jackson, who are expected to play a role in the upcoming Music City Bowl. Other wide receiver signees include four-star Legend Bey, though it still remains to be seen if he’ll make it to campus, and local four-star Tyreek King.
