Eye Patches and Focus | Tennessee Volunteers Football News

Tennessee’s wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope is turning heads — and catching passes — with an eye-patching drill designed to sharpen mental focus, not hand-eye coordination. Inspired by a podcast, he had his players cover one eye and catch nearly a thousand footballs, turning practice into a pirate-themed mental workout. With a background as a former receiver at Samford and briefly with the Cardinals, Pope has built a reputation for developing elite talent like Jalin Hyatt. His approach goes beyond catching — he demands discipline, physicality, and reliability, celebrating when his receivers deliver clutch blocks as much as touchdowns. If it helps them stay laser-focused under pressure, then this unconventional method is clearly working. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/a461352b1953eb91