Tennessee lands UCLA QB Joey Aguilar after Nico Iamaleava transfer

College football is in a perfectly fine and reasonable state. Why do you ask?

A day after former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava committed to UCLA, transfer Joey Aguilar — who transferred to the Bruins from Appalachian State in ‘The Portal: Winter Edition’ — is reportedly signing with the Vols, per ESPN’s Chris Low.

Per On3’s Pete Nakos, Tennessee reached out to recruit Aguilar to Knoxville, and an agreement was quickly reached to add Aguilar to a quarterback room that includes Jake Merklinger and George MacIntyre.

It was, indeed, a quick turnaround for Aguilar. It was reported Monday morning he was hitting the transfer portal after Iamaleava was added to an already outrageously crowded UCLA QB room. Now, he will enter an ostensibly more competitive situation at Tennessee after not seeing the field with the Bruins.

Joey Aguilar stats

Aguilar played two seasons at Appalachian State, completing 511 of 850 passes (60.1%) for 6,760 yards, 56 touchdowns and 24 interceptions. Aguilar threw an FBS-leading 14 interceptions in 2024.

2023 stats (with Appalachian State): 293 for 460, 3,757 yards, 33 TDs, 10 interceptions
2024 stats (with Appalachian State): 218 for 390, 3,003 yards, 23 TDs, 14 interceptions

Tennessee QB depth chart

Tennessee’s depth chart at quarterback includes two scholarship quarterbacks: Merklinger, a redshirt freshman, and MacIntyre, a freshman.

Aguilar immediately becomes the most experienced QB in the room, and if the post-2023 iteration of him were heading to Tennessee he might be considered a frontrunner to be a starter. However, a turnover-prone 2024 that saw an FBS-leading 14 interceptions means he’ll compete. But he has to prove he can protect the ball.