No. 10 Alabama will battle No. 16 Vanderbilt in its first SEC contest at home this season. The matchup sees two veteran tight ends face off.
Eli Stowers
Stowers is the leading receiver for Vanderbilt thus far, hauling in 22 receptions for 301 yards and two touchdowns. He received first-team preseason AP All-American and preseason All-SEC honors after an impressive 2024 season, in which he racked up 49 receptions for 638 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack called Stowers a “very dynamic” receiver.
Against Alabama in 2024, Stowers caught six passes for 113 yards, leading all receivers in both receptions and receiving yards for the contest.
He originally committed to Texas A&M out of high school as the No. 12 quarterback in the class of 2021, earning him a four-star rating. Stowers had dual-threat capabilities under center to pair with an impressive 6-foot-4, 210-pound frame, as he tossed 66 touchdowns and rushed for 38 more in his three seasons as the starter at Guyer High School in Denton, Texas.
Stowers suffered a torn labrum in his freshman season in College Station, which left his career as a quarterback in jeopardy. He later transitioned to tight end, gained 25 pounds of weight and transferred to New Mexico State for the 2023 season, where he first teamed up with Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and offensive coordinator Tim Beck.
Stowers followed Pavia and Beck to Nashville and helped the team pick up its first winning season and bowl victory since 2013. In his second season as a Commodore, he has helped lead the team to its best start since 2008, along with impressive wins against Virginia Tech and South Carolina.
Josh Cuevas
Cuevas, unlike Stowers, has not been the Crimson Tide’s No. 1 option on offense this season. He has, however, made an impact when called upon.
Cuevas has recorded 10 receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns thus far. He snagged a touchdown on Alabama’s opening drive of the season in the loss to Florida State.
He has stepped into a veteran leadership role in the tight end room following the departures of CJ Dippre and Robbie Ouzts to the NFL.
“It’s definitely a little bit of an adjustment of stepping into that leadership role a little bit more,” Cuevas said in March. “Helping the younger guys mold into the system that we’re kind of getting going, some of the younger guys coming in, working on them a little bit.”
Against Georgia, he caught two passes for 24 yards, one of those receptions being a first down on the Crimson Tide’s second drive, which led to Ty Simpson and Isaiah Horton connecting for a score to make it 14-0 in favor of Alabama.
Despite the numerous other pass-catchers competing with him on Alabama’s offense for receptions and targets, Cuevas will likely continue to produce. He currently has the fifth-most receptions on the team and the most among tight ends.
No. 10 Alabama and No. 16 Vanderbilt will face off in an SEC showdown with playoff implications on Saturday. Kickoff is slated for 2:30 p.m. CT and the game can be streamed on ABC.
