Tennessee tight end Holden Staes plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal. This is according to a report from On3’s Hayes Fawcett on Thursday.

Staes appeared in all 13 games for the Vols this season, catching 15 passes for 131 yards and one touchdown. He helped Tennessee reach the College Football Playoff.

Staes came to Tennessee after starting his career at Notre Dame. He was ranked as a four-star recruit and the No. 9 tight end in the country in the 2022 class, according to On3 Industry Rankings.

Before playing at Tennessee, Staes played in 11 games and made eight starts for Notre Dame in 2023. He finished the year with 15 catches for 176 yards and four scores. Staes immediately becomes one of the top tight end options in the transfer portal for the 2025 season.

To stay up to date with the latest player movements, check out On3’s transfer portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources for keeping up to date with the latest developments.

Tennessee tight end Charlie Browder is entering the transfer portal

Holden Staes is the second Tennessee tight end to enter the NCAA transfer portal on Thursday. It was like that before him Charlie Browder We are looking for a new home.

Browder initially began his career at UCFwho will join the Knights in 2021, one year after Tennessee’s current head coach Josh Heupel went to Knoxville. However, then assistant coach Alex Golesh was crucial in recruiting Browder to UCF. He would then leave Orlando and move to Tennessee in 2022.

After graduating high school from Christ School in North Carolina, Browder was a three-star recruit in the class of 2021 according to On3 Industry Rankings. He was the No. 61 tight end and No. 1,121 ranked tight end. players overall in this recruiting cycle.

While in high school, Browder helped lead his team to the NCISAA Division II state title in 2020 and earned second-team all-state honors at tight end. He was a three-sport athlete. Since entering college, Browder has had relatively limited playing time. In 11 career games, he has two receptions for 10 yards. Both happened against UConn in 2023. Additionally, he has a total of four tackles in his time on special teams.

The Tennessee Volunteers had an excellent season in 2024, going 10-3. That included a 10-2 performance in the regular season and a bid for the College Football Playoffs. Even though the Volunteers felt they had a strong case to host in the first round of the College Football Playoff, they ended up starting on the road against the Ohio State Buckeyes. That was a game they ultimately lost.