Tennessee starting quarterback Joey Aguilar has quickly landed a spot on a prestigious watch list after being named the Vols’ starter on Sunday night. The former transfer quarterback will lead the Vols’ offense when they kick off the season later this month against Syracuse after starting the previous two seasons for the App State Mountaineers.
The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation named Aguilar to its preseason watch list on Tuesday afternoon. The award is given annually to the top senior or upperclassman quarterback who is on track to graduate with their class.
It is the first preseason recognition for the 6-foot-3 quarterback from Antioch, CA.
There are eight quarterbacks from the SEC on the list, including Tennessee’s Joey Aguilar, Auburn’s Jackson Arnold, Kentucky’s Zach Calzada, Arkansas’ Taylen Green, South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, Mississippi State’s Blake Shapen, Alabama’s Ty Simpson, and Georgia’s Gunner Stockton.
Aguilar was the starter for App State for the past two seasons, racking up 6,760 passing yards and 56 touchdowns in the two combined years. He transferred to UCLA in December and participated in spring training camp with the Bruins, but decided to look for a new home after the arrival of former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava in Los Angeles. With Aguilar in need of a new program and Josh Heupel looking for a new veteran quarterback to supplement his young QB room, the two decided to pair up in late April.
Without going through training camp with the Vols in the spring, Aguilar’s plate was loaded to the brim when he arrived in Knoxville with learning the program, the offense, and his teammates. He was entrenched in a quarterback battle this fall with redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger and true freshman George MacIntyre, but came out as the winner of the competition on Sunday night.
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During a preseason press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel detailed the coaching staff’s reasoning for selecting Aguilar as the starting signal caller.
“Joey, coming in May, having to learn the offense throughout the late spring summertime, getting his feet on the grass with our guys, learning how we practice, but also growing each day just continued to trend upward in his comfort and control and command of what we’re doing,” Heupel said. “That’s decision making, accuracy with the football, our checks that he controls, you put all that together and that’s ultimately why we made the decision.”
Tennessee senior tight end Miles Kitselman has emerged as not just one of the top leaders on the offense, but on the team overall. The former Alabama transfer had a breakout year in his first season with the Vols in 2024 and is looking to take the next step, both on and off the field, this season. While speaking as a UT representative during SEC Media Days in July, Kitselman spoke about his first off-the-field impressions of the now-starting quarterback for the Volunteers:
“Joey is one of those guys who has a very outgoing personality,” Kitselman said. “He walks into a room and is automatically friends with everybody. Whenever he first committed, I hit him up on Instagram and said, man, love to have you. Let’s go out and get a bite to eat and let’s get to know each other. We were just off since then. We get along super well. He gets along with everybody. Him and Jake and George, they all thrive together. They all compete with each other. And I don’t think we could have asked for a better dude.”
During his time at App State, Aguilar established himself as a true gunslinger quarterback. His tape shows that he’s not afraid to make any throw on the field, and his statements to the UT media suggest that he has no intention of changing that mentality with the Vols. Aguilar’s interceptions went up from 2023 to 2024, which has been a topic of conversation this preseason, but Tennessee’s staff believes they can put him in a position to succeed. Aguilar racked up 6,760 yards, 56 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions in his two seasons with the Mountaineers.
Tennessee and starting quarterback Joey Aguilar will begin the season on Aug. 30 against Syracuse in Atlanta.
Check out the full Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List here.
