Ever heard of a 3-star JUCO quarterback transferring from the Sun Belt to UCLA and landing in Knoxville to replace a former 5-star phenom? That’s Joey Aguilar’s path for you. He’s not your typical SEC starter, but then again, this isn’t a typical Tennessee Volunteers offseason. With Nico Iamaleava now out the door and Aguilar preparing for a one-year audition under Josh Heupel’s rapid-fire offense, the 2025 Vols are putting the car keys in the hands of a passer who brings moxie, experience—and a cannon of an arm.
So, what exactly is Josh Heupel expecting from Joey Aguilar? Analyst J.D. PicKell broke it down on The Hard Count, and the vision isn’t about shoehorning Aguilar into Nico’s shoes. It’s about tailoring the offense to him.
“If I’m Josh Heupel, I’m going to ask him to be Joey Aguilar,” PicKell said. “Don’t come out here and try to be Joe Milton, to be Hendon Hooker. Like go do what you do. Go do what got you to this spot, which is you pull the trigger, you let it rip, brother.” That’s the beauty of Heupel’s approach—he customizes the tempo, reads, and even spacing to match his quarterback’s DNA. From Hendon Hooker to Joe Milton to Nico, the system flexes. Now it’s Joey’s turn in the driver’s seat.
The key to Aguilar’s success won’t just be the arm—it’ll be his brain. “Like, you play with a reckless abandon that maybe we have to rein in a little bit. We want to cut down on those INTs, for sure. I think Joey Aguilar playing to his own strengths, and Josh Heupel elevating those, that’s going to be a massive part as to why Tennessee is successful. Not because he’s trying to keep it all to the vest and trying to not make the big mistake. Like, just go let it rip, dude. Let Josh Heupel be Josh Heupel. Let him rein in those mistakes, but you go be you, that’s I think the biggest part of this. Now, what’s going to make him successful, though, is what happens upstairs for him, like the processing of it all. Tennessee, they go a mile a minute when it comes to how they operate offensively. They go NASCAR fast.”
NCAA, College League, USA Football 2024: South Alabama at App State Sep 19 September 19, 2024: Appalachian State Mountaineers quarterback Joey Aguilar 4 throws against the South Alabama Jaguars in the first half of the Sunbelt Football matchup at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, NC. Scott Kinser/CSM Credit Image: Â Scott Kinser/Cal Media Boone Nc United States EDITORIAL USE ONLY Copyright: xx ZUMA-20240919_zma_c04_011.jpg ScottxKinserx csmphotothree296447
“It’s a complex system when you’re going a play every 20 seconds. That’s the big task for Joey Aguilar.” To manage that pace, PicKell called for Aguilar to be “borderline roommate status with Josh Heupel” this offseason. It’s not about memorizing plays—it’s about mental muscle memory, split-second decision-making, and syncing every read with warp-speed precision.
Aguilar, though, isn’t rattled by big stages. This is a fifth-year player who’s been through the football wringer—JUCO trenches, Sun Belt shootouts, a brief stop in Westwood, and now SEC Saturdays. He’s got deep-ball placement, off-platform creativity, and legit guts in the pocket. Need proof? Watch his tape: three rushers in his face, feet nowhere near set, yet he drops a dime downfield.
And this is the best setup Joey Aguilar has ever walked into. Forget UCLA—this Tennessee offense is loaded. Aguilar enters his fifth year with the best receivers, best coaching, and most offensive line support he’s had in his college career. Last season, Tennessee’s offense hit a wall when it came to explosive plays. Despite Iamaleava’s ceiling, the Vols’ vertical threat faded. Aguilar, on the other hand, has shown deep-ball placement and poise under pressure. He’s had “3 rushers in his face, off-platform, dime” kind of moments. And unlike the Vols’ 2024 air attack, which stalled far too often, Aguilar brings a fearless trigger. That could be the key to reviving the big-play element.
Defensively, Tim Banks returns a veteran-laden unit that should once again be stout. That makes Joey Aguilar’s job a little easier: don’t carry the team—ignite it. Tennessee also boasts backfield depth with DeSean Bishop, who quietly shone behind Dylan Sampson last year. If Bishop pops, and the tempo holds, Aguilar won’t need to be Superman. He just needs to be the same QB who made App State a threat in every game last fall.
The question floating around Rocky Top isn’t can Aguilar replicate Nico’s production—it’s can he exceed it? The Vols aren’t caught up in hypotheticals anymore. What’s done is done. The discussion now turns to maximizing this roster with this quarterback. And with Aguilar’s moxie, arm talent, and the perfect environment for risk-friendly playmaking, it might not be that wild to believe he can outperform what 2024 Nico would’ve done in the same spot. Josh Heupel’s never had a quarterback lead the SEC in turnovers. That’s not by accident.
Tennessee’s ‘slow burn’ recruiting style reflects Josh Heupel’s steady hand
If you’re a Vols fan, refreshing your feed for a commitment after every big recruiting weekend and walking away disappointed—take a breath. There’s a method to Josh Heupel’s mellow madness. Unlike some programs that crank up the heat and strong-arm kids into early pledges, the Vols operate with a different playbook.
VolQuest’s Austin Price shed some light on the behind-the-scenes approach during an appearance on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will. “I do think they are never going to be a program that tries to squeeze a kid or push a kid to do something,” said Price. “I just don’t think that’s Josh Heupel’s nature. And a lot of programs do that.” It’s a chill vibe—but it works. And families across the recruiting landscape are starting to notice and appreciate it.
Sure, fans might get a little twitchy when a big weekend comes and goes without fireworks. “There were no commitments from last weekend, or there were no commitments out of the last couple of weekends—much like a year ago,” Price acknowledged. “And then all of a sudden, boom, boom, boom.”
So hang tight, because the commitment dominoes will fall. “I think you’ll start to see that later this week,” Price said. “Tennessee’s going to have a run of commits over the next two weeks, and it won’t be sky is falling.” Putting pressure on kids to commit isn’t a sustainable way to have success in recruiting. In other words, don’t panic—Heupel’s slow-burn recruiting style is built to last, not just flash.
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