Tennessee football finally has clarity regarding its quarterback room ahead of the 2026 season. A Knox County judge denied Joey Aguilar’s preliminary injunction, On3’s Chris Low first reported. The decision means that Aguilar will not be eligible for the 2026 season. George MacIntyre, Faizon Brandon and Colorado transfer Ryan Staub will now compete for the Vols’ starting quarterback job in 2026.
The judge originally granted Aguilar’s request for a temporary restraining order this month which granted Aguilar short-term eligibility before Friday’s preliminary injunction. After hearing arguments from both Aguilar and the NCAA’s lawyers, Judge Chris Heagarty sided with the NCAA.
Aguilar sued the NCAA over its eligibility rules related to former junior college athletes. Current NCAA rules count JUCO seasons the same as NCAA seasons for a players eligibility. Aguilar sought to separate the two which would give him one final year of eligibility.
A judge in the similar Diego Pavia case originally sided with the Vanderbilt quarterback last winter, enacting a temporary restraining order against the NCAA. In response, the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to student-athletes who previously played in junior college and ran out of eligibility during the 2024-25 athletic year.
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That ruling gave Aguilar an extra-year of eligibility and eventually led to him landing at Tennessee. However, Aguilar played two seasons at Diablo Valley Community College and would have one more year of eligibility remaining if the courts again sided with him and other student-athletes versus the NCAA again.
Aguilar was originally a plaintiff in the Pavia lawsuit before separating from it last week due to the slow moving process. With Tennessee’s spring semester and winter workouts under way, Aguilar is looking for a quick decision so he can re-join the Tennessee team.
“After a breakout season as the Volunteers’ quarterback in 2025, the NCAA is blocking Aguilar from playing a fourth year of Division I football – depriving Tennessee of a gifted quarterback and robbing Aguilar of millions in compensation,” Aguilar’s complaint states according to KNS.
As a fifth-year senior at Tennessee in 2025, Aguilar completed 272-of-404 passes for 3,565 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while the Vols posted an 8-5 (4-4 SEC) record. Aguilar was average over the course of the season though he played with a benign tumor on his right arm “for most of the season.” His lawsuit claims that the tumor affected his performance.
