With Preaseason Expectations Mounting, Ramel Keyton Remains Dependable

Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Ramel Keyton was one of the best pass catchers on the team in 2022 and should be ready for another big season in the offense.

Expectations continue to build in Knoxville, Tennessee. We've now seen head coach Josh Heupel run an elite offensive scheme for two seasons and have success with two different starting quarterbacks. While his highs with previous starter Hendon Hooker were big and sustained, Joe Milton III may have even more expectations than Hooker did last season. Now that people know Tennessee's scheme can work at the SEC level, they expect Heupel to get production out of a 6-5, 245-pound talent.

There are a bunch of moving parts to who Milton will throw to this year. Wide receiver Bru McCoy had the second-most yards on the team last year and has played a lot of college football, so we can comfortably assume that he should produce if healthy. Second-year target Squirrel White had a strong true freshman season, capped off by a breakout Orange Bowl performance. He's got a ton of potential, and if we were looking back at the 2023 season eight months from now and say, "Wow, Squirrel White led that team in receiving yards," I wouldn't be surprised. Oregon transfer Dont'e Thornton is the biggest question mark in the room because he could be very productive, but he still needs to do that in an expanded role at the college level.

Most of the talk about Tennessee's wide receiver room ends there. However, one more major piece is dependable and talented - fifth-year senior Ramel Keyton. He didn't play much during his first three years in Knoxville, Tennessee, but the four-star Georgia native stayed the course and had a great 2022. He logged 31 catches for 562 yards and five scores, finishing as the team's No. 3 wideout in terms of production. Keyton established a strong rapport with Hooker, as Hendon knew he could trust Keyton's 6-3 frame downfield.

Tennessee WR Ramel Keyton making a diving catch against Tennessee Tech in Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 18, 2021. (Photo by Saul Young of the News Sentinel)

Tennessee offensive coordinator Joey Halzle dove into why Keyton achieved such high marks in 2022. "It's rare to be in this building and not see Ramel in there on the JUGS machine, catching balls, short crossers like he is in there all the time getting his stuff in," Halzle said after day one of fall camp. "Ramel, he's an elite deep-ball threat. You saw that last year when he stepped in for Cedric (Tillman). That guy can track the deep ball at a really high level, and he's got deceptively long speed on people because he's a long strider." This isn't the first time someone at Tennessee has gone out of their way to praise Keyton - former Tennessee wide receivers Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman were very complimentary of Keyton last season.

Some guys command the respect of everyone in the building. Keyton is one of those - he walks in every day and competes even though he didn't get on the field much for most of his career in orange. He has a professional future but isn't letting up. Though underrated now, many will appreciate Keyton when the real games begin.

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