Tennessee starting TE Austin Pope undergoes surgery for herniated disc

If/when the 2020 season kicks off, Tennessee football could very well be without a starting piece of its offense.

On Twitter, Austin Pope revealed that it was recently determined that he had suffered another herniated disc in his back. The tight end also confirmed that he underwent surgery to repair the issue Thursday morning. That marked the second such surgical procedure on his back, although the one two years ago was on a different disc.

Below is Pope’s complete social-media post:

Sometimes life doesn’t always go the way we plan it. I’ve had had times and challenges in my life, so this is nothing new to me. I recently have been dealing with a lot of nerve pain coming from my low back. I went to get an [MRI] Monday morning and the results were not what I expected. Doc told me I herniated yet another disc in my back, this time being at L3L4. I’ve been very down and disappointed because I already had back surgery two years ago for a different disc. I had surgery this morning and am recovering at home right now. I really would appreciate any support in these tough times. I love this game, my teammates, and my coaches and I will do anything to help this program succeed. Prayers would be appreciated. Minor setback for a major comeback.

Pope did not give a timeline for a return. At least one outlet, though, stated that the player “is expected to miss an extended period of time.”

Source: Tennessee starting tight end Austin Pope, who underwent a procedure on his back this morning, is expected to miss an extended period of time

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) July 17, 2020

Pope was a three-star member of the Tennessee football Class of 2016. The Knoxville native redshirted as a true freshman, then started three of the 20 games in which he played the next two seasons. In 2019, Pope started 11 games for the Volunteers.

Primarily a blocking tight end, Pope caught four passes for 21 yards this past season. For his career, he has seven receptions for 85 yards. 51 of those yards came on one catch in a 2018 game against Florida.