Some Tennessee football fans have already picked their preferred quarterback: Joey Aguilar, Jake Merklinger or George MacIntyre.
But why so soon, and based on what?
On this episode of “The Volunteer State” podcast, hosts Adam Sparks and John Adams explore the phenomenon of fans showing stern allegiance to a particular quarterback over the other contenders on the same team.
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It’s even stranger when the quarterbacks have barely played, or at least not played for the Vols.
UT begins preseason practice on July 30, when the the quarterback competition will take center stage. To hear the full conversation, listen to the podcast. Here are some highlights.
Lessons from Peyton Manning vs. Branndon Stewart
Sparks shared the story about when, in 1994, he briefly thought Branndon Stewart was a better option at quarterback than Peyton Manning.
In a blowout loss to Florida, Stewart had better stats than Manning. And Stewart was a dual-threat quarterback like Heath Shuler, which seemed to matter at the time.
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Let that be a lesson for fans looking for the second coming of Hendon Hooker in the current competition. Successful quarterbacks can take different shapes and sizes.
Sparks, a 14-year-old during the 1994 season, said it also didn’t matter to him that Peyton was Archie Manning’s son. He preferred to be a contrarian by initially favoring Stewart.
“To a 14-year-old kid in 1994, telling me that he was Archie Manning’s son was like telling a kid today that (a freshman quarterback) is Tim Couch’s son – that is, a son of a really good former SEC quarterback who you had seen very little of but had heard the name of,” Sparks said.
“So for those reasons, for a very short time I thought Branndon Stewart was better than Peyton Manning. And obviously I was completely wrong.”
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JOEY AGUILAR He won over Tennessee teammates. Now he must win QB job
Why fans favor Joey Aguilar, Jake Merklinger or George MacIntyre
Adams said fans like to believe that they can see something that coaches or media haven’t seen. It motivates them to pick a quarterback, often not the obvious frontrunner, in hopes of being proven right.
Reporters do that too. We can watch a preferred quarterback make a couple of nice plays and then accentuate his positives while ignoring his flaws.
UT fans favoring Aguilar point to his experience in 24 starts at Appalachian State. He passed for 6,760 yards and 56 touchdowns in two seasons.
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UT fans favoring Merklinger believe his experience in Josh Heupel’s system will make a difference. And Merklinger flashed his talent in the 2024 Orange and White spring game.
UT fans favoring MacIntyre like that he’s an in-state product with a college football pedigree. And he played well in the 2025 Orange and White spring game.
Too much attention to Joey Aguilar? You be the judge
Sparks saw a subtle backlash to Aguilar from some UT fans following SEC football media days. Media covering the Vols produced several stories from the event that focused on Aguilar and his integration into the team over the summer.
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Those stories didn’t crown Aguilar as the starter. Instead, they laid out the open competition, where all three quarterbacks will get a shot at the starting job.
But some fans interpreted attention paid to Aguilar as an endorsement of him as the starter. It’s a common misperception. But stories were also written about Merklinger and MacIntyre when they were the newest quarterback on the roster.
Sparks and Adams also discussed some players to watch in preseason practice, including Duke transfer running back Star Thomas and Alabama transfer wide receiver Amari Jefferson.
To hear that discussion and more about the quarterbacks, listen to the podcast.
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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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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee fans pick favorite QB: Joey Aguilar, Jake Merklinger, George MacIntyre
