Eli Stowers of Vanderbilt football wins Mackey Award for nation's top tight end

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Eli Stowers, the standout Vanderbilt football tight end, was named the winner of the Mackey Award for the nation's best tight end on Dec. 12.

Stowers, a two-time All-SEC first team selection, caught 62 passes for 769 yards and four touchdowns in 2025. His receiving yards ranked first among tight ends nationally. He is a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Stowers was also named the winner of the Campbell Trophy, which is awarded to the player who shows the most combined excellence in academics and football.

Vanderbilt finished the 2025 season with a 10-2 record, the first time in program history that had happened. The Commodores are set to finish their season against Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Dec. 31 (11 a.m. CT, ESPN) in Tampa. Clark Lea said that he expected Stowers to play in the game, though no official announcement has been made.

Stowers began his college career as a quarterback at Texas A&M but later transferred to New Mexico State and converted to tight end. He was one of several Aggies players who followed their head coach Jerry Kill and offensive coordinator Tim Beck to Vanderbilt after the 2023 season, a group that also included Heisman finalist Diego Pavia.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Eli Stowers of Vanderbilt football wins Mackey Award for best tight end

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