Tennessee football is likely going to have to find a new quarterback for next season. Under the current rules, Vols signal caller Joey Aguilar is out of eligibility following his lone year in Knoxville. So, will Tennessee entrust a young returner in Jake Merklinger or George MacIntyre, a true freshman in five-star Faizon Brandon or go to the transfer portal for its quarterback next season?
The option with the highest immediate ceiling is likely grabbing a proven quarterback from another Power Four school. If that’s the route that Josh Heupel chooses to go, one of the top options that fits the criteria is officially on the market. Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby has informed the school that he intends to transfer, according to a report from Pete Thamel.
Sorsby is finishing up his redshirt junior season, playing two seasons at Indiana and two with the Bearcats. In 2025, Sorsby completed 61.6% of passes for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also ran for 580 yards and nine scores.
NEWS: Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby has informed the school that he intends to enter the NCAA transfer portal, Sorsby told ESPN today. Sorsby is waiting on his NFL Draft grade, and he’ll explore transferring as he waits for feedback on the NFL draft. pic.twitter.com/00DyYmPrRn
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 15, 2025
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Currently, there are no direct ties between Sorsby and Tennessee. After a productive year, he’ll likely command a good bit of NIL money with schools willing to pay for a proven signal caller.
The teams that are instantly in the mix for Sorsby, according to a report from Matt Zenitz, are Texas Tech and Indiana. He could also still choose to go the NFL route as a projected draft pick.
Sorsby is one of the three biggest quarterback names to announce their intention to enter the portal so far, though. He joins Sam Leavitt of Arizona State and DJ Lagway of Florida, who also entered today. So far, Lagway has been tied to LSU, Baylor and Miami.
