Braylon Staley is still almost two weeks away from making his college decision official on Early Signing Day. But the signing ceremony he held Friday made it clear that he has no intentions of backing out on his longstanding commitment to Tennessee.
Tennessee linebacker Keenan Pili revealed on social media on Friday afternoon that he will be returning to Rocky Top for a second season in 2024 after receiving an extension of eligibility waiver from the NCAA.
According to a Tennessee official, the waiver was granted earlier on Friday, giving Pili the chance to play college football for a seventh season.
Pili posted a message on a graphic he posted on social media with the caption, “Vol Nation, thank you for welcoming me into the Knoxville family.” Let’s rerun it in 2024.
In Tennessee’s season-opening victory over Virginia on September 2, Pili sustained an upper-body injury that would ultimately cost him the rest of the campaign. With his leadership and experience, as well as his ability to play as a run defender in the box and in space with his range and coverage skills, Pili was a valuable addition to the middle of the defense when the Vols acquired him from BYU through the transfer portal in December.
Pili led the Cougars’ squad twice as captain and finished with 190 tackles in 36 games during his tenure. At BYU, he started 24 times.
As a redshirt junior in 2022, Pili recorded 62 tackles, 4.0 TFLs, a sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in his final season at BYU. A season-ending injury had ended his 2021 campaign the year before. He was able to play in three games and finished with 31 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, and a quarterback hurry. In a 24-16 victory over Arizona, Pili racked up a career-high 17 tackles and one tackle for loss.
Pili was a three-star recruit coming out of Timpview High School in Provo. The 6-foot-3, 237-pound linebacker was considered the No. 909 overall player in the 247Sports composite, as well as the No. 57 overall outside linebacker and No. 14 player in the state of Utah. He redshirted as a freshman and was a member on the scout team in 2016 before serving a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Orlando, Florida from 2017-19.
