Tennessee Football Walk-On Earns Scholarship Ahead of Final Collegiate Season

This Tennessee Vols defensive walk on has earned his scholarship ahead of the 2026 season.

Tennessee defensive lineman Mike Bethea II (89) during Vols' football's first day of fall camp in Knoxville on July 30, 2025. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Tennessee Volunteers have been moving forward when it comes to the college football scene, as they now have more of an idea of where their roster stands. They have made many additions, but they also lost plenty of players to the transfer portal.

The Vols will be returning many players, including someone who just recently earned a scholarship for the Vols. That player is Mike Bethea, who has spent multiple seasons with the Vols. Bethea celebrated the scholarship online.

Mike Bethea Earns a Scholarship

Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel during the NCAA college football game against Vanderbilt on Nov. 29, 2025, in Knoxville, Tennessee. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"Blessed and infinitely grateful to officially accept a scholarship offer from the University of Tennessee Football program! This journey has not been easy and came with endless doubt and tribulation but it’s been WELL worth it. JEHOVAH JIREH YOU ARE ENOUGH," said the Tennessee Vols defensive lineman.

He is finishing his career, as this next season will be his final season. He will likely look to compete for minutes, but there is no sign saying that this will be an easy climb. He will be in a position group with many top names in the SEC when it comes to rushing the passer and stuffing the run.

The talented prospect was very successful when it comes to his high school career, as he found some success with Westwood High School. This is a high school in the state of South Carolina, but following his prep years, he would find his way to Maryville College. This is where he would spend his first two seasons before transferring to the Vols before the 2024 season. The 2024 season was the first one for Bethea with the Vols.

He would find himself in a redshirt opportunity, which would carry over to the 2025 season, where he just wrapped up his redshirt-junior season. For his redshirt-senior season, he will be playing on scholarship after staying with the Vols when he could have hit the portal and played elsewhere. This reward has been granted to him, but the job is far from finished. He will be tasked with playing in a new defensive scheme, as he will be playing under the leadership of Jim Knowles. He will also be working with LEOs coach Andrew Jackson and co-defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter.

The Vols will be back in action with spring practice sooner than later, which will be the set of practices that the newest Tennessee scholar will look to make his case to be a rotational piece.

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