Heading into Saturday’s game against New Mexico State, Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar had recorded 33 straight collegiate games with 200+ passing yards. The streak goes back to his first start of the 2023 season with App State, his full season with the Mountaineers in 2024, and every game of his tenure on Rocky Top so far.
But with the way things went on Saturday, there was a point when the streak looked like it was coming to an end.
Aguilar played the first three quarters of Tennessee’s 42-9 win over the Aggies, but had only racked up 197 passing yards through that point in the game. The Vols were up by 39 points, and it was clear and obvious that Tennessee was at a point where it wanted and needed to get the backup players some snaps.
With the streak looking like it was going to potentially come to an end just three yards short, Tennessee actually trotted Aguilar back out with the offense for one play during the Vols’ first drive of the fourth quarter.
Aguilar completed a screen pass to Mike Matthews to the left side of the field on first down, which went for seven yards, and then promptly jogged off the field before second down as backup quarterback Jake Merklinger entered the game for the first time. Aguilar didn’t get the whole drive, but instead went in for one play to get a high-percentage throw that needed three yards at minimum.
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It was clear that someone on Tennessee’s sideline, whether it was Josh Heupel or someone else, was aware of the streak and allowed Aguilar to go back in during a fairly risk-free moment and throw the quick screen.
With 204 total passing yards on the day, Aguilar’s streak is now at 34 straight games with at least 200 passing yards. Considering the Vols will need to throw the ball and score points against both Florida and Vanderbilt over the next two weeks, it seems likely that Aguilar will finish the regular season with the streak moving up to 36 games.
Through 10 games this season, Joey Aguilar has upped his lead on the SEC passing yards mark to 2,941 for an average of 294.1 yards per game. Aguilar’s one touchdown pass against the Aggies also kept him tied for the lead in SEC passing touchdowns with 22 on the season, alongside Alabama’s Ty Simpson and Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed.
With the New Mexico State game now in the rearview mirror, Tennessee will turn its attention to the final two games of the regular season against Florida and Vanderbilt. The Vols will travel to Gainesville this weekend for a night game in the Swamp before returning to Knoxville for a post-Thanksgiving finale against the Commodores.
Despite the playoffs being an afterthought at this point, those two critical games will be the difference in Tennessee going 7-5, 8-4, or 9-3 before the bowl season. There’s still a lot to play for, and Joey Aguilar will be right in the center of it all.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee coverage this season.
