Joey Aguilar has been in the middle of one of college football’s most compelling offseason narratives, a quarterback soap opera that unfolded throughout the SEC and Pac-12. Nico Iamaleava, once prophesied as the Volunteers’ future at QB, made a dramatic exit for UCLA. Into the breach? Joey Aguilar, straight off a record-breaking stint at Appalachian State, is becoming the man charged with guiding Tennessee’s offense. Aguilar’s ascension wasn’t one of gradual, cautious development. Rather, he’s made a point of being tossed headfirst into the fray.

At App State, after replacing the injured starter in the opener, he threw a 32-yard touchdown on his first FBS play. From there, he had several multi-TD games, became the third-most productive single-season touchdown passer in Sun Belt history, and even won Cure Bowl MVP honors following a gritty, rain-soaked victory at Miami (Ohio) (13-9). He accumulated 6,760 yards and 56 touchdowns in the past two seasons, displaying mastery of the moment, particularly when the stakes were highest. The move by Tennessee placed Aguilar solidly in the public eye, and, let’s face facts, on the hot seat. This is not any SEC program, after all.

This is Tennessee, where patience is in short supply, and quarterbacks are heroes or cautionary tales. Here, he’s one of the team’s top offseason additions, and there’s already chatter about whether he’s “more advanced” than former Vols QB Hendon Hooker. But things are not looking that simple for him. “I think it’s important, we talk about it at the beginning of every year, you earn everything in this game… That’s certainly true at the quarterback position,” Josh Heupel says on the SEC Media Days about the Tennessee QB battle. The question for 2025 isn’t just how far Tennessee can go, but how high Joey Aguilar can climb on the SEC’s gladiatorial QB arena.

At the 2025 SEC Media Days, Heupel didn’t waste any time answering “the” question. Currently, the competition has three candidates: Joey Aguilar, the high-profile transfer from Appalachian State (and temporarily UCLA), Jake Merklinger, the redshirt freshman, and George MacIntyre, the heralded true freshman already making headlines with his ability. Heupel’s message to Vol Nation and the QBs themselves is bluntly frank. He noted that these three have “all competed in a really positive way” on the field, in meetings, and even off the field, developing relationships and leadership skills. But when it is a network television airing a naming a starter? That’s going to take time.

“We will have a competition at the quarterback position. We have three guys inside that room. I am really proud of what they have done. Joey, since he got here in May. Jake Merklinger and George MacIntyre, and what those two guys have done since they have been on campus, and I am really proud of the steps they have taken through the summer and developing a relationship and rapport with the guys around them,” said Heupel. It doesn’t matter how many stars you were as a recruit, how many touchdowns you threw last season, or how much off-season hype is surrounding your name; what you do at this moment is what counts.

Joey Aguilar dives into Josh Heupel’s playbook

Joey Aguilar’s summer with Tennessee has been a crash course in the Heupel offense and an actual test in developing chemistry under duress. Josh Heupel, who has witnessed more than his fair share of offseason quarterback competitions, is keeping a close eye on how Aguilar is catching up. “Got out there in May,” Heupel states about Aguilar at the SEC Media Days. “Something that we’ve been through before as a staff. Took him through our spring installs once he was there on campus.” For Heupel, this is familiar ground. He’s discussed a great deal about what it takes for a quarterback to really lead the Vols.

Heupel’s seen the small things, too: Aguilar taking the offensive line out to dinner, getting extra reps with the young receivers, building credibility not as a transfer, but as a would-be leader. What Heupel emphasizes is ownership. Aguilar’s not being given anything; he must “earn everything in this game,” and that includes calling the offense, dealing with the bad plays (because there are going to be a few), and maintaining the energy after the good ones.

And the run game? SEC Now staff comments that Tennessee’s strong rushing attack may become Aguilar’s best buddy as he makes the transition. So here’s Joey Aguilar for you, a new jersey, a new system, and a new set of guys to lead. If he continues to pile up good days on the field, in the film room, and even over dinner with the O-line, this might be the beginning of something very special for Tennessee’s new quarterback.