Staying on the football field has been the biggest challenge Brad Cottam faced during his five seasons at Tennessee.

Hoping to receive a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA after he underwent left wrist surgery prior to the 2007 season, he returned for the final five games of his senior campaign after he was denied that additional year.

Cottam had flashes of brilliance for the Volunteers. But he has undergone five surgical procedures and was also involved in a car accident that kept him off the football field at various times since arriving on campus in 2003. Along with his younger brother, 6-foot-8 Jeff, the Cottams gave the Volunteers the tallest tight end unit in college football.

At Evangelical Christian High School, Brad Cottam earned All-Metro Memphis private school team honors as a senior. He was a Super Southern 100 choice by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and ranked as the 12th-best prospect in the state of Tennessee by Rivals.com, a recruiting service that rated him 44th among the nation's tight ends. The Knoxville News-Sentinel rated him the state's eighth-best prospect and the Kingsport Times-News had him ranked tenth on their Super 16 Class of 2003 squad.

Cottam served as team captain and was a two-year starter at tight end. During his final season, he had 24 receptions for 340 yards and five touchdowns. Against Harding Academy (Ark.), he caught a career-best five passes for 120 yards. He was also a standout basketball player, averaging more than 10 points each of his last two seasons.

Cottam enrolled at Tennessee in 2003, earning Academic Southeastern Conference Honor Roll recognition while spending the season on the scout team. He appeared in 13 games as a reserve tight end in 2004, coming up with two catches for 34 yards, as he missed spring drill action after undergoing thumb ligament surgery and then battled with a sore shoulder throughout fall camp and into the season.

The tight end underwent shoulder surgery that would sideline him for 2005 spring camp. He appeared in 11 games that season, but did not catch any passes, as he finished with one tackle playing on the special teams vs. Memphis. He again earned Academic All-SEC honors.

Cottam continued to play with shoulder issues in 2006, but managed to start six of the 13 games he appeared in. He snared fourteen passes for 182 yards (13.0-yard average), as his 45-yard reception vs. Vanderbilt was the longest catch by a Tennessee tight end since 2002.

Cottam again missed spring drills, as he spent the 2007 camp recovering from April sports hernia surgery. In August, he underwent left wrist surgery after tearing ligaments in fall drills. He did not return to action until the Arkansas clash on Nov. 10, appearing in the team's final five games. He finished with five receptions for 125 yards (25-yard average), registering his first career touchdown vs. Wisconsin in the Outback Bowl.

Positives: Has the rare-sized frame you look for in a tight end with broad shoulders, thick bone structure, wide back and chest, tight waist, wide hips, thick thighs and calves, long limbs, good arm extension and large hands … Versatile athlete who has lined up in a variety of receiving roles (tight end, H-back, slot, fullback) … Quick-twitch athlete who shows good strength and explosion off the snap to defeat the press and get into his routes quickly … Crisp route runner with the plant-and-drive agility to come out of his breaks with no wasted motion … Shows good arm extension to pluck the ball outside his frame and has the soft hands to look the ball in (will catch with his chest at times) … Gives total effort in practice and in games … Hard worker in the weight room and takes well to hard coaching … Can usually be found after practices putting in extra hours working on his pass-catching skills … Very agile for a player his size, as he has good timed speed for the position and shows the strength and concept for taking proper angles in attempts to stalk second level defenders as a cut blocker … Shows good route-progression agility, knowing when to drop his pads and execute a cut … Has a good grasp of the playbook and shows the field awareness and vision to locate the blitz and get into position to protect the pocket … Looks very balanced and fluid in his running stride, as he does a nice job of getting "skinny" to generate a clean release … Shows good urgency getting into his routes, using his hands well to get a strong push off the jam … Very quick to get out and attack linebackers, as he is very seldom held up and often runs free off the line … Shows the same explosiveness off the snap, whether coming off in a two-point or three-point stance … Best when he is allowed to stretch the coverage and expose the defenders … Despite his tall frame, he is effective at lowering his body weight to execute clean breaks … Comes out of those breaks well to separate in the open and it is rare to see him take soft-angle cuts or round off at the top of his pattern … Has the quickness to reach a seven-tech and a knack for hooking them … Gets a good push upfield and can easily separate from linebackers in man coverage … Creates good separation working underneath and uses his body effectively to shield defenders from the ball … Best when running digs, drags and option routes … Catches the ball smoothly and has decent hand-eye coordination, doing a nice job of adjusting his body to make the tough catch out of the framework of his body (just needs to stop using that body as a crutch when he fails to extend) … Has the acceleration to gobble up the cushion, get behind the defender and stretch the field when running vertical routes … Needs to win more jump balls, but this is more a concentration issue than a lack of athletic ability … Has the speed to challenge most safeties in attempts to stretch the field … When he keeps his head up (inconsistent here), he works hard to gain leverage blocking in-line, but seems best when asked to shield and position rather than act as a drive blocker … Better blocking linebackers in the second level, where he shows good intent and stalking skills, along with the concept for taking proper angles, as he works hard to seal off and make contact in the open field.

Negatives: For all of his athleticism, his one glaring weakness has been his inability to stay out of the trainer's room, as he has had five surgical procedures and a car accident that sorely hampered his collegiate progress … For all of his athletic promise, his on-field production has been sorely lacking, having just 21 receptions in 38 games spanning five seasons … Better downfield blocker than when operating in-line, as he lacks the ideal body flexibility to redirect and mirror when operating at the line … Has a tendency to duck his head and dive into the defender when asked to block at the line of scrimmage … Needs to do a better job extending for the ball outside his frame, as he is generally the type that uses his body as a crutch, despite displaying soft hands (only caught 5-of-12 passes thrown to him in 2007) … Lacks proper knee bend when trying to redirect and looks a bit stiff in his hips trying to adjust to the ball in flight … Has good straight-line speed, but without good hip wiggle or shake, has to drive through tackles rather than elude after the catch … Needs to improve concentration, and tends to look up the defender before making the catch, resulting in a few drops of easy throws … With his size and arm reach, he should be catching more contested balls than he has, as he doesn't always jump and adjust to take the ball away from the defender, despite having the strength to do so.

ComparesTo: ZACH MILLER-Oakland … Some experts compare Cottam to Pittsburgh's Matt Spaeth. While their athletic build is very similar, Cottam has better route-running ability and quickness. Like Miller, he can be lined up at tight end, in the slot or as a motion receiver, showing good route running ability and the ability to create separation coming out of his cuts. The thing that he does better than most big tight ends is move off the snap to get into his routes quickly vs. the press. The big question: Will his medical chart raise too many red flags?

2004: Underwent April surgery to repair ligament tears in his thumb … Missed a good portion of August drills with a sore shoulder that would later require surgery to repair.

2005: Sat out spring drills after undergoing shoulder surgery.

2007: Underwent April surgery in Philadelphia to repair a sports hernia … Suffered a left wrist fracture during the third week of August camp, undergoing surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center … The injury would sideline him for the team's first nine games of the season, returning to action vs. Arkansas (11/10).

Campus: 4.61 in the 40-yard dash … 365-pound bench press … 500-pound squat … 300-pound power clean … 33 ½-inch vertical jump … 9'5" long jump … 34-inch arm length … 9 ½-inch hands.

Combine: 4.63 in the 40-yard dash … Bench pressed 225 pounds 24 times … 33-inch vertical jump.

Attended Evangelical Christian (Germantown, Tenn.) High School, playing football for head coach Jim Heinz … Earned All-Metro Memphis private school team honors as a senior … Super Southern 100 choice by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and ranked as the 12th-best prospect in the state of Tennessee by Rivals.com, a recruiting service that rated him 44th among the nation's tight ends … The Knoxville News-Sentinel rated him the state's eighth-best prospect and the Kingsport Times-News had him ranked tenth on their Super 16 Class of 2003 squad … Served as team captain and was a two-year starter at tight end … During his final season, he had 24 receptions for 340 yards and five touchdowns … Against Harding Academy (Ark.), he caught a career-best five passes for 120 yards … Was also a standout basketball player, averaging more than 10 points each of his last two seasons.

Graduated with a degree in International Business and is presently taking post-graduate courses in Sports Studies … Three-time Academic All-Southeastern Conference choice … Younger brother, Jeff (2005-present) is also a tight end on Tennessee's squad … Born Bradley Joseph Cottam on 11/28/84 … Resides in Hermantown, Tennessee.