National outlet makes a bold statement as to how new Tennessee Vols QB Joey Aguilar could be more similar to Hendon Hooker than to Nico Iamaleava

"Joey Aguilar will have a better statistical season in 2025 than what Nico Iamaleava had in 2024" Pickell said. "It's not that hard. Nico threw for 19 touchdowns last year, 5 interceptions. And it was good enough to get to the College Football Playoffs.  2600 yards, cool. But Joey Aguilar in a down year, quote unquote, at App State threw for over 3000 yards and 23 touchdowns. Now, the down year part of this is he threw double digit interceptions last year. You've got to cut that down. 

"But Joey Aguilar - the thing I love about his game and the reason why I feel extra confident about him at Tennessee in this prediction, he's gonna let it rip. Just personality wise, the way he plays the game is different than Nico Iamaleava. Some of this could have been Nico's first year as a starting quarterback, all the hype, all the expectations at Tennessee. Maybe that wears on a guy, but Joey Aguilar is not afraid to cut it freaking loose. 

"And if you're a Tennessee fan, I think you're excited about that, and you should be because of what he brings to the table. Hendon Hooker when he was so good at Tennessee brought a couple of things. He brought experience - check the box, Joey Aguilar.  Two, the ability to connect on the deep ball. Again, check the box with Joey Aguilar. 

"So, I'm not telling you Joey A is gonna be Hendon Hooker, but I am saying there are some similarities to get excited about and some differences from what you had last year at the quarterback position."

There's no doubt that too often during SEC play last season, the Vols struggled to get the passing game going for the first two or three quarters for a number of games.  Whether the lion's share of the blame lay with Iamaleava, the wide receivers, or the coaching staff is debatable to some degree, but it's impossible to deny that Iamaleava's struggles contributed there.  

And what was noticeably absent was the deep ball, something that Hooker excelled at delivering in 2021 and 2022.  Iamaleava at times appeared hesitant, and other times had untimely misfires.  If Aguilar indeed can step in and confidently deliver those throws, that would add an element to the Vols' passing game that it's been largely missing since Hooker's career in Knoxville ended. 

Of course, the SEC is a different animal than the Sun Belt, and the competition will rachet up a couple of notches. But Aguilar will also be playing with talent he hasn't had in his previous stops. 

If Pickell is right about Aguilar, then perhaps the Vols' offense in 2025 could be far better than many are giving them credit for - and perhaps Tennessee will return as College Football Playoff contenders again this fall.