Former Tennessee Vols player wins national championship with the Indiana Hoosiers

A former Tennessee Vol is a national champion after Indiana took down Miami in the College Football Playoff championship game.

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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A former Tennessee Vols player is now a national champion thanks to the Indiana Hoosiers’ win against the Miami Hurricanes in an instant classic on Monday night.

Former Vols tight end Holden Staes was a contributor on Monday night in Indiana’s 27-21 win over Miami in the College Football Playoff championship game.

Staes, who started his career at Notre Dame before spending one season at Tennessee, transferred to Indiana ahead of the 2025 season.

The Georgia native caught just seven passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns for the Hoosiers in 2025, and he didn’t record any stats in the win over Miami, but Staes was on the field for several important plays on Monday.

Staes, for example, made a key block on Riley Nowakowski’s touchdown run in the first half against the Hurricanes.

Staes wasn’t the only former Vol on the field on Monday.

Miami defensive back Jakobe Thomas is also a former Vol who saw significant action in the national championship game.

Thomas, in fact, delivered a hit to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza that resulted in a bloody lip for the Heisman winner.

This probably won’t be the last time that a player leaves Tennessee and wins a national championship elsewhere. That’s just college football these days.

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