{"id":120612,"date":"2025-08-30T10:24:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T10:24:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/120612\/"},"modified":"2025-08-30T10:24:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-30T10:24:09","slug":"what-to-know-about-joey-aguilar-tennessee-footballs-starting-quarterback-vs-syracuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/120612\/","title":{"rendered":"What to know about Joey Aguilar, Tennessee football’s starting quarterback vs Syracuse"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joey Aguilar<\/a> is the new starting quarterback for Tennessee football<\/a> after a wild offseason that brought the former Appalachian State<\/a> QB to Knoxville.<\/p>\n

Aguilar will make his debut with the No. 18 Vols against Syracuse in Atlanta on Aug. 30 (noon ET, ABC). It is the third straight season in which coach Josh Heupel has a new QB1.<\/p>\n

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Here is what to know about Aguilar:<\/p>\n

How Joey Aguilar ended up at Tennessee<\/p>\n

Aguilar transferred to UCLA from Appalachian State, announcing his commitment in late December as the apparent next QB for the Bruins.<\/p>\n

The Nico Iamaleava saga rippled into Aguilar’s situation as the ex-Vols quarterback transferred out of Tennessee amid an apparent NIL disagreement. He landed at UCLA in April<\/a>. Aguilar entered the portal days later<\/a> and the Vols were a natural destination with a need at quarterback.<\/p>\n

Aguilar committed to Tennessee on April 21<\/a>, completing what amounted to a quarterback swap with UCLA.<\/p>\n

Joey Aguilar almost quit football to become a firefighter<\/p>\n

Aguilar’s college football career almost never happened.<\/p>\n

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He headed for City College of San Francisco in California following his high school career in nearby Antioch. The season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Without any Division I opportunities, Aguilar mulled over a career change.<\/p>\n

“Before I went juco, I wanted to be a fireman,” Aguilar said on Aug. 20. “I was like, if I am going to do that, I might as well start my career, start taking classes for that. Then football came back around, I came back into it. Just to see how my life shifted in just a short time. People were saying, ‘Yo, come play one more time, give it one more shot.’ It is kind of crazy to see.”<\/p>\n

Joey Aguilar had a record-setting run at Appalachian State<\/p>\n

Aguilar went to Appalachian State from Diablo Valley Community College, where he went after a year at City College of San Francisco. He tore it up in Boone, North Carolina, setting records in his first season in 2023.<\/p>\n

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The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Aguilar threw 33 touchdown passes, had 3,757 passing yards and totaled 4,002 yards of total offense, all three of which set school records. He was the 2023 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year.<\/p>\n

Joey Aguilar has thrown 56 touchdowns at the FBS level<\/p>\n

Aguilar is averaging 288.5 yards of total offense in his FBS career, which leads all active players with at least 2,500 yards total. He has passed for 270.4 yards per game in those two seasons.<\/p>\n

He threw for 6,760 yards and 56 touchdowns with 24 interceptions.<\/p>\n

AGUILAR: How SEC schools tried to get QB Joey Aguilar two years before Tennessee football did<\/a><\/p>\n

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Joey Aguilar has an extra year of eligibility thanks to Diego Pavia<\/p>\n

Aguilar entered the portal in December after the NCAA granted a blanket waiver to junior college transfers for one additional year.<\/p>\n

The NCAA waiver covered athletes who competed at a non-NCAA school for at least one season and would have been out of eligibility following the 2024 season.<\/p>\n

The NCAA’s decision followed the ruling that appointed Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia a preliminary injunction to play a sixth year of college football due to his two seasons in junior college.<\/p>\n

Mike Wilson<\/a>\u00a0covers University of Tennessee athletics.\u00a0Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com\u00a0and follow him on X\u00a0@ByMikeWilson<\/a>.\u00a0If you enjoy Mike\u2019s coverage,\u00a0consider a\u00a0digital subscription\u00a0<\/a>that will allow you access to all of it.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Joey Aguilar: Tennessee football quarterback starter vs Syracuse<\/a><\/p>\n