KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Countdown to kickoff is down to 9 days, and the 18th-ranked Vols are ramping up. On Wednesday, Joey Aguilar, Ethan Davis, Arion Carter and Bryson Eason met with reporters to break down the team’s progress.
“It’s just a lot of anticipation building up right now,” Carter said. “You know, just going in, game prepping and everything, just want to be able to make decisive decisions, know the offense as far as Syracuse personnel and what they like to do. They’re a really good team.”
On Sunday, Tennessee announced Aguilar as its starting quarterback. The senior signal caller was asked about the appointment during his media session.
“I was super excited,” Aguilar said. “Coming out here and being the starting quarterback for this program is nothing but excitement. That’s all I can say, I’m just super excited. If you would tell me that in 2021-22, I probably would not have believed it. I was in JUCO at that time looking at players at this level like, ‘dang, that’s crazy, I wish I was there,’ and here I am, you know? I just have to thank Jesus for giving me the opportunity to be here.”
The Volunteers kick off against Syracuse in the Aflac Kickoff Game at noon ET on Aug. 30 in Atlanta. Tickets are on sale at AllVols.com.
Tennessee Football Press Conference | Aug. 20, 2025
Senior QB Joey Aguilar
On his reaction to being named the starting quarterback …
“I was super excited. Coming out here and being the starting quarterback for this program is nothing but excitement. That’s all I can say, I’m just super excited.”
On what he felt like won him the job…
“That’s tough to say. I don’t think anything specific, I would say just because George (MacIntyre) and Jake (Merklinger) are really good athletes and good quarterbacks. It was a hard battle. It was fun though. We went out there and competed with each other but also helped each other in every way we could, so I don’t really have a specific answer for that.”
On what Coach Heupel said to the quarterbacks when he told them who the starter was going to be…
“He just told us the way we competed with each other (was good). There’s two ways you can compete with somebody. You compete and just be solo and not really try to help the other person or you can compete together and work – iron sharpens iron – and work together to build whoever goes out there to be a starter. Even if it was me or somebody else, that we were working together and be as one. The way he told us how he liked how we went out there every day to support each other and going into practice not trying to be bad to the other person.”
On his assessment of how he’s performed during fall camp…
“Yeah, you know it was a lot coming in with such a short amount of time but I grinded out the days. Being here in the early mornings and late nights and would just go out there and watch film, talk to the coaches and just try to get the game plans going and get the concept of the offense down. It took a while but I got it down. I was able to go out there and perform in the scrimmages and stuff like that.”
On his progress from scrimmage one to scrimmage two…
“From one to two, I definitely felt more comfortable. Going out there and running it completely live was different. Running a practice is kind of different than going to a scrimmage and game-time speed, so definitely got a better grasp of it during the second week of camp. I was in there spending more time in film and trying to get all the key details of plays, certain reads and all the specifics like that.”
On if anything during camp surprised him about the offense after just going through installs over the summer…
“I would say the only thing I really had to adjust to was the tempo of the offense. I was somewhat in (a similar tempo offense in) 2023, I wouldn’t say as high tempo as this but we were pretty on the ball (at Appalachian State), just not as fast, so just getting used to getting the signal and lining up and going through my progressions were the adjustments that I had to make.”
On what his thoughts would have been if he told himself a few years ago that he would be the starter at Tennessee in 2025…
“If you would tell me that in 2021-22, I probably would not have believed it. I was in JUCO at that time looking at players at this level like, ‘dang, that’s crazy, I wish I was there,’ and here I am, you know? I just have to thank Jesus for giving me the opportunity to be here.”
On difficulty remaining hopeful that things would progress in his football career…
“It was hard. Everything’s not easy but I just stayed faithful to Jesus. I have a tattoo on my ribs, it’s Proverbs 3:5-6, ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart, do not lean on you own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him.’ So, that kept me going and my family just supported me, and my friends really getting me back to play JUCO and supporting me and helping me throughout that time. It was fun. I wouldn’t go back and want to change my journey at all. JUCO was an amazing time, coaches were great, people were great and my friends and family helped me a lot.”
On how the current reality compares to goals that were set in the past…
“Yeah, it’s crazy because before I went JUCO I wanted to be a fireman so I was like, I might as well start. COVID happened and football was kind of done at the JUCO level. I was like, if I’m going to do that, I might as well start my career, start taking classes for that and then when football came back around, I came back into it. Just to see how my life has shifted in just a short time of people saying, ‘yo, come play just one more time, give it one more shot, so it’s kind of crazy to see.”
On how good of a firefighter he would have been…
“I would’ve been the best one.”
On if this week has been different since being named starting quarterback…
“It doesn’t change anything. I have to go out there and attack every day as if I’m not (the starter) because those guys are competitors as themselves so they’re coming in here to work and you never know, something could happen that those guys could go in. It happened to me at App State, so I’m going in there to compete still every day.”
On the progress with connecting with the wide receivers during fall camp…
“It feels good. When I got here in the summer I was building a connection with them before they were out but it’s good to have them back and getting them back going and having all the guys healthy.”
On if his previous experiences helped him handle the situation in the spring and his move to Tennessee…
“I would say my life growing up through JUCO definitely helped shape who I was. I was somewhat of a different person, probably would’ve had a different approach, not sure how I would’ve approached that situation if it happened, but I would say JUCO and just the transition to App State and adjusting to that environment helped me see things through easier.”
On dynamic with having a head coach who’s played quarterback…
“It’s awesome. The whole quarterback room is great. They kind of get a different perspective through everybody. If you ask a question, you get the same answer or just a different perspective of what they see and how they see through plays and progressions. It’s kind of cool that they all pretty much play the position and can give an insight with everything.”
On sharing the news of being named the starter with his family…
“It was great. It was Sunday night so I kind of shot them a text and they wanted to stay up but I was tired so I just fell asleep and caught them the next day, but it was awesome. They were super excited.”
On the process of earning the trust of his teammates…
“I grew up working for everything that I got. My dad always told me to be grateful and to be humble, mom as well, so coming here, trust takes time to build. You can’t force somebody to trust you and so I’m just a nonchalant kind of guy, I’m not trying to come in here and tell everybody, ‘yeah, you got to trust me, I’m your guy.’ So, I just slowly connect with people here and there, go grab some food, hang out, just having conversations with everybody, not even just a main guy I would say, you have to build trust with every single person on your team whether they play or not. I think my biggest key with JUCO and going to App State, connecting with those type of people and a team quickly, helped me understand how to connect with different types of people.”
On the reaction from his teammates after finding out about him earning the starting job…
“They were super happy and I think that they would be happy for anybody that got the job.”
On his eagerness for the first game and to showcase his ability…
“I’m excited. I’m especially excited to run out of that T though. I haven’t been to a Tennessee game in my life so that’s one check mark I can make off of my list.”
RS-Sophomore TE Ethan Davis
On the tight end room being deep and the competition at fall camp…
“It’s amazing, man. Especially when you have those guys in there that are so competitive and highly talented. It kind of feeds off each other. Miles helps me get better, DaSaahn helps Miles get better, Jack helps me get better. We all kind of piece together with one another.”
On what he’s seen from QB Joey Aguilar…
“I mean, his approach, he came in and wasn’t, you know, all ‘rah, rah this is my program now’. He did it the right way, the correct way. You know, he paid his dues. He came in, he worked, he showed the work. Ultimately, he produced on the field which led him to winning that spot.”
On how the freshmen tight ends have impressed during camp…
“Their size for sure. How they line up, assignment sound. I tell them all the time, they are miles ahead of where I was when I stepped in as a freshman. I came in 215, lean body basketball player. Those boys came in ready to play football size-wise day one. I’m just trying to help them know that next play, you have the size, you have it, you just have to get everything else put together. Those boys can be helpful for us this year as well.”
Junior LB Arion Carter
On confidence level for defense going into the season…
“Oh, really confident. Obviously, there’s room and areas to grow in, but we’re getting better day by day and we’re taking little steps and you can see it during little increments at practice that we may have messed up on the play before or a day before, that we don’t mess up now. And the biggest thing is being a young defense and a talented defense and is not making the same mistake twice, and I feel like we’re competing and doing really good right now.”
On eagerness to play with the season opener 10 days away…
“It’s just a lot of anticipation building up right now. You know, just going in, game prepping and everything, just want to be able to make decisive decisions, know the offense as far as Syracuse personnel and what they like to do. They’re a really good team. So, I just want to go in and be prepared. I’m ready to just go out and play.”
On leadership role changing and how teammates have responded…
“I feel like with (Keenan Pili) going down last year and me stepping up in a big way and just being more of a vocal guy, I feel like it carried into this season. It’s not necessarily something that’s even bigger, I feel like, in an aspect as far as magnifying everything. I feel like I’m just going out there being myself, playing free and just leading my guys out there and being confident and decisive in everything I do and say.”
RS-Senior DL Bryson Eason
On assessment of defense up-front and as a whole going into the season opener…
“I’m still trying to get everything together and focus on the details of things, like plays, hand placement, making sure everybody knows their job so we can go out there and execute as one, really. So, just focusing on executing and the details so we can all play as one.”
On how the young defensive linemen have handled camp…
“Those guys have just been great. They’ve been a sponge, you know what I’m saying? Just listening to me and (Dominic Bailey). I feel like Dom has been doing a great job with showing the (defensive ends and defensive tackles), because he has to be diverse there with how things go. I feel like he’s taken a major step and a major role to lead a lot of young guys. I actually, you know, sometimes follow up behind him and am close with him and what he says. So, just trying to lead those guys in the right direction and let them know we’ve been through the hard part before, it’s just y’all’s turn. So, y’all gonna get through it and we got to turn back throughout the process of that.”
On how Ethan Utley has developed during training camp…
“Ethan, he’s so smart, so he understands the playbook well, he gets everything. He even helps his peers out, the guys that came in with him. His athleticism, his ability to run, he is still working on the physical part and getting his hands down. But just how fluid he can move and all his movements is going to help us a lot.”
