TAMPA, Fla. – Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel, running back DeSean Bishop and linebackers Arion Carter and Jeremiah Telander will represent the Volunteers at 2026 SEC Football Media Day Monday in Tampa.
The annual summer kickoff event will be held at the JW Marriott and Tampa Marriott and be televised by SEC Network all day with coverage beginning at 7 a.m. ET. Tennessee is paired with Kentucky in the afternoon session beginning at 1:30 p.m.
Heupel’s main stage appearance will be carried live at 2:55 p.m., and he will join the Paul Finebaum Show live on set at approximately 4:40 p.m.
Heupel is making his sixth SEC Media Days appearance, representing the third-most by a Tennessee coach behind only Phillip Fulmer’s 15 and Johnny Majors’ eight. Heupel enters his sixth season with the Vols. His 45 wins are the third-most through the first five full seasons by a UT coach, trailing only Fulmer (50 from 1993-97) and Bill Battle (46 from 1970-74).
Bishop, a 2025 second-team All-SEC back, is coming off Tennessee’s third straight individual 1,000-yard rushing season. He is the first returning 1,000-yard rusher for the Vols since Jalen Hurd returned in 2016. Bishop has logged 1,531 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns during his career. The Karns native hosted his own youth football camp on Saturday afternoon, teaching dozens of kids the game.
Carter is making his second straight SEC Media Days appearance. The All-SEC linebacker led the conference in tackles per game last year, despite battling injury. He withdrew from the NFL Draft to return for his fourth season. Carter has amassed 161 total tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and nine pass breakups in 31 career games with 22 starts. The three-time Academic All-SEC recipient in public health is on track to graduate later this summer.
Telander, a Gainesville, Georgia, native has started at linebacker the last two seasons for the Vols and carries a streak of 21 straight starts into the season opener. He ranked second on the team with 80 tackles last year, and he’s accumulated 158 tackles and 12 tackles for loss for his career. He was voted onto the 2026 SEC Football Leadership Council and serves as UT’s representative.
Heupel and the players will visit with hundreds of national, local and regional media, while also conducting interviews for ESPN and SEC Network programming that will be utilized throughout the season.
Tennessee’s first practice of preseason camp is Aug. 5, exactly one month before the Vols open their 130th campaign against Furman on Sept. 5 at 3:30 p.m. in Neyland Stadium. Season tickets are sold out for the fourth consecutive year. Fans interested in purchasing future new season tickets can fill out the 2027 season ticket interest form.
