Tennessee receiver Braylon Staley wins SEC Freshman of the Year

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Tennessee wide receiver Braylon Staley was named 2025 SEC Freshman of the Year, the third Vols player to earn that honor.

Quarterback Peyton Manning was the 1994 SEC Freshman of the Year. Running back Jamal Lewis won it in 1997.

The SEC announced its superlative individual awards on Dec. 10. Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia won Offensive Player of the Year. Texas A&M defensive end Cashius Howell won Defensive Player of the Year. Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was named Newcomer of the Year. Oklahoma kicker Tate Sandell was Special Teams Player of the Year.

Alabama's Kadyn Proctor and Texas A&M's Trey Zuhn shared the Jacobs Blocking Trophy. Vanderbilt linebacker Nick Rinaldi was named Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Vanderbilt's Clark Lea was voted SEC Coach of the Year.

Staley, a redshirt freshman from Aiken, South Carolina, emerged as a reliable target for the highest scoring offense in the SEC. He led Tennessee with 64 receptions along with 806 yards and six touchdowns. He ranked second among FBS freshmen in both receptions and receiving yards.

Staley also climbed into the UT record book. His 64 receptions are tied for the 10th-most in a single season in Vols history, and he'll have the chance to improve that ranking. Marcus Nash owns the UT record with 76 catches in 1997.

No. 23 Tennessee (8-4) plays Illinois (8-4) in the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30 (5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) in Nashville.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing atknoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Braylon Staley: Tennessee football WR wins SEC Freshman of the Year

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