ATLANTA – Quarterback Joey Aguilar won over his new Tennessee football teammates by taking them out to dinner, playing video games and joining enormous swimming pool parties at an undisclosed location.
“Joey is one of those guys that when you meet, you immediately hit it off. Same sense of humor, similar personalities,” UT tight end Miles Kitselman said at SEC football media days on July 15.
“It’s kind of like you’ve known each other for a while. And it’s something that doesn’t really happen a whole lot.”
Aguilar is a former Appalachian State standout who transferred to UT from UCLA, following Nico Iamaleava’s departure from the Vols in the spring over an NIL dispute. Aguilar is in a three-player race for UT’s starting quarterback position with redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger and freshman George MacIntyre.
When Aguilar arrived on UT’s campus in May, he immediately started building relationships with his new teammates.
First, Aguilar took the offensive linemen out for dinner. Then he sought out teammates to play Fortnite with in a nightly video game gathering. And then that camaraderie developed into swimming pool parties that swelled to about 50 players.
It made quite an impression.
“The first week he was here with all our guys, he took the offensive linemen out to dinner,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. “Those are little steps in developing relationships where you can eventually lead them.
“When you’re coming in, how you present yourself every single day inside and outside the building is going to be how players perceive you. He has an ability to connect with our guys as a veteran guy. He has developed relationships and earned the trust of those guys.”
What Josh Heupel said about Tennessee QB competition
Granted, Aguilar has impressed teammates with his work ethic and easy-going nature.
But a quarterback winning the summer is like a coach winning a press conference. Eventually, they’re judged by what happens on the field during the season.
Heupel said it’s an open competition at quarterback. Aguilar must beat out Merklinger and MacIntyre to start in the Vols’ season opener against Syracuse in Atlanta on Aug. 30 (noon ET, ABC).
“All three of those guys know that they’ll get their opportunity,” Heupel said. “It’s important for everybody on your roster to understand that the best player is going to play. You have to go earn it.”
Aguilar has playing experience. He started 24 games at Appalachian State and earned the 2023 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year award. He transferred to UCLA in January. But when Iamaleava transferred to UCLA in April, Aguilar jumped back into the portal and landed with the Vols.
Merklinger, a former four-star recruit, has knowledge of UT’s system but little playing experience. He spent the past year practicing in Heupel’s offense, but completed 6 of 9 passes for 48 yards as a No. 3 quarterback last season.
MacIntyre has upside. The four-star recruit was one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2025 class.
Tennessee football fans will meet Joey Aguilar soon
Aguilar is still a relative stranger to UT fans. He’s made a few Instagram posts about his faith, his girlfriend, his graduation from Appalachian State and his arrival at UT.
But Aguilar hasn’t done an interview this summer. Instead, he has kept a low profile, bonded with teammates, watched game film and worked to learn UT’s offense.
“Part of being the trigger guy is having the respect of the guys around you,” Heupel said about Aguilar prioritizing those relationships.
But Aguilar will soon step into the spotlight, beginning with his first media appearance at UT’s on-campus media day on July 29. Merklinger and MacIntyre are also scheduled to speak, and preseason practice kicks off on July 30.
Until then, Aguilar may squeeze in a few more game film sessions, on-field workouts with wide receivers, dinners with offensive linemen and those team-building pool parties. UT players say Aguilar never turns down an invitation from teammates.
“He’s down to do something every time,” Kitselman said. “To put it in a simple way, when we’re like, ‘Hey, man, we’re going to the pool,’ (Aguilar) is always like, ‘All right, I’ll be there in five (minutes).”
Considering those pool parties attract most of UT’s roster, they may generate as much team chemistry as any offseason event. As for their location, the Vols aren’t willing to give that up.
When asked, Kitselman replied “football players only.”
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
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