Every year, someone comes from a place of relative obscurity to carve out a role on the Tennessee Vols’ roster. That happens at just about every program, and trying to pinpoint where that could happen is sometimes an exercise in futility.

However, Tennessee might have that player in their tight end room, and it’s someone who likely wasn’t on many radars coming into fall camp.

Tennessee TE Luca Wolf came to Knoxville from Europe through the NFL Academy

Tight end Luca Wolf came to Knoxville from Vienna, Austria by way of London. That’s not exactly the path you would normally expect to see a player follow to an SEC football field. But that’s the case with Wolf, as tight ends coach Alec Abeln noted on Thursday during his press conference.

“So there’s a guy, Kris Durham, that is with NFL Academy,” Abeln said. “He reached out to me after Luca’s junior year and just said, ‘hey, I think I got one for you.’ Was planning on bringing him to camp over the summer. He ended up being offered and OV’d (official visit) to Cal the weekend he was going to come to camp.

“So, really didn’t get to put eyes on him the way things unfolded for us in the summer (which) ended up being a blessing in disguise. Watched his first three games, and you know, they’re not playing the Frankfurt Red Hens. They’re playing Edgewater, they’re playing the Hun School, they’re playing IMG. Really just watching his first three games, some of the things he’s able to do with this body at his size, really impressive and did not come off as just a complete project. Like, there was a foundation laid there that made it really easy to say, for sure.

“And then you start talking to the kid as it got real, and you know, get to know what kind of person he is, and that part of it was just impressive. You’re looking for traits, you’re looking for a foundation, but really, it’s a total package with that kid.”

Wolf could end up being more than a nice story; he could be a contributor on the field, per Abeln

It’s always a nice story for an international player to make his way onto a program and be rewarded for hard work by being a part of a roster.

However, Abeln thinks there could be a lot more than that for Wolf on this fall and gives him a real shot and cracking the tight end rotation and contributing in his first year.

“I think he’s absolutely given himself a chance to be a real contributor this fall,” Abeln added. “Obviously, won’t find out until pads come on until these next couple of weeks go by, but mentally he’s so mature, so smart, knows the game at a much higher level than, you know, the last couple NFL Academy guys we’ve been around. A testament to what they’re doing over there, like that program is night and day. Really, really impressive what they’re doing now, where he came in the door knowing ball at a level that most United States high school players don’t know.

“But just the maturity of that kid, the way he works, back to the last point, the coachability of that kid, going to give himself a chance. And then physically, I mean he’s big, strong, able to survive in there right now.”

Tennessee’s top two tight ends have gotten a lot of praise this offseason. Ethan Davis has the chance to be one of the better ones in the SEC this year. DaSaahn Brame showed flashes last year and could be a factor as the team’s TE2.

But beyond that duo, there’s room for a third tight end to make a name for himself and carve out a role. And if Wolf can fulfill that lofty potential that Abeln talks about, we could hear see his number called on the field this fall.