Breaking: Josh Heupel confirms Tennessee Vols’ plan at quarterback after the addition of UCLA transfer Joey Aguilar
UCLA Bruins transfer quarterback Joey Aguilar officially committed to the Tennessee Vols on Tuesday.
“I’m excited to announce that I’m officially committed to the University of Tennessee,” wrote Aguilar in an Instagram post. “This journey hasn’t just been mine; it’s been shared with everyone who has supported me – thank you.
“I’m looking forward to being a part of the traditions, the fans, and the legacy of winning at Tennessee. I’m ready to get to work, compete at the highest level and build something special with my teammates and coaches. I can’t wait to get to Rocky Top! I’m ready to Give My All for Tennessee.”
Aguilar transferred to Tennessee in the wake of former Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s decision to transfer to UCLA earlier this month (a de facto trade between the two programs, essentially).
On Tuesday evening, during a Big Orange Caravan stop in Memphis, Vols head coach Josh Heupel spoke about the addition of Aguilar and he confirmed that UT will have a legitimate quarterback competition this summer/fall.
“We’ve got the opportunity to have a great competition at the quarterback position. I like the skill sets of the guys that are in there. I like their mindset,” said Heupel. “You’ve got to learn it, earn it and go take the job. The standard is to have a guy who is ready to play at a championship level.”
“(Joey Aguilar) has starts. He’s played at a high level, [he has] close to 7,000 yards passing [and] 24 career starts, I believe,” said Heupel in his first public comments about Aguilar. “He’s the got the ability to throw the ball vertically. He’s accurate and on time in the intermediate passing game. He has the ability to use his feet to extend plays, but you can use him in the quarterback run game, too. It’s similar to the traits that we have with guys on campus right now.”
It sounds like the Vols are going to have a wide open quarterback battle between Aguilar, redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger, and true freshman George MacIntyre during fall camp.
MacIntyre may be the most talented of the group, but he lacks experience. Merklinger has the most experience in Heupel’s system (thanks to his redshirt year in 2024), and Aguilar has the most collegiate experience overall.
In other words, it wouldn’t be a shocker to see any of Tennessee’s three scholarship quarterbacks under center for the season-opener against Syracuse on August 30.
