Kamal Hadden underwent season-ending shoulder surgery Thursday, the Tennessee football cornerback announced on Instagram.

Hadden, who has been Tennessee's best defensive back this season, was hurt in the second quarter of Tennessee's 34-20 loss to Alabama on Saturday in Tuscaloosa. He had 19 tackles with three interceptions and eight passes broken up.

"I feel like I let everybody down," Hadden wrote on Instagram. "The fam, gang, the team, everybody. But I always took the longer route, I always was in a fight with adversity, I always had it a lil harder, I always wanted it a lil tougher cause at the end the win a lil more greater. ... The get back start now.”

The No. 20 Vols (5-2, 2-2 SEC) face Kentucky (5-2, 2-2) on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN) in Lexington, Kentucky

Hadden is the second Vol to have a season-ending injury since the season began. Vols wide receiver Bru McCoy suffered a season-ending right ankle injury on Sept. 30 against South Carolina.

Hadden had been one of UT's starting cornerbacks all season alongside BYU transfer Gabe Jeudy-Lally. He started all seven games, while Jeudy-Lally started the past five. UT will likely turn to senior Doneiko Slaughter without Hadden. Slaughter started the first two games and entered against Alabama when Hadden was hurt before the senior returned in the second half.

Hadden was hit by Alabama running back Isaiah Bond after an 11-yard gain on a short pass from quarterback Jalen Milroe in the second quarter. He was evaluated by trainers on the field and walked off the field with his shoulder hanging by his side.

"I put everything I had in it," Hadden wrote. "Just to get right this last round, Learning how to not always be right, but also Learning how to be right and still make correction to be even better. Learning it’s a right way and it’s a wrong way to situations. I was stuck in my ways for a long time thinking I had all the answers. With time I learned Change is apart of growing, and you gotta sacrifice to grow. I was just getting comfortable, the work was just starting to show, I was showing the world what I already knew. My last year, my bag year, and I strike out."

Hadden, who played high school football at River Rouge outside Detroit, Michigan, played one season at Independence Community College in Kansas. He transferred to Auburn in December 2020 before leaving the Tigers and joining Tennessee in May 2021.

He played in seven games and started two in his first season at UT before moving into a central role in 2022. He started six games and played in nine as a junior before excelling as a senior.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Kamal Hadden: Tennessee football cornerback has season-ending surgery