So, Saturday was a pretty quiet day in Knoxville? Yeah right. The headlines were of course dominated by Nico Iamaleava leaving town, but the Tennessee football team took the field for the annual spring game and there were plenty of highlight moments.
Fans packed Neyland Stadium and they were able to enjoy the playmakers putting on a show from start to finish. While the veterans made some plays, multiple youngsters, who we're featuring in this article, really impressed. We've got our three biggest winners from the spring game below, with one name in particular sure to surprise you.
3. QB George MacIntyre
To start us off, though, we've got to give some love to true freshman quarterback George MacIntyre. With Iamaleava being a no-show for practice on Friday and leaving the program before the spring game, all eyes were going to be on the other QBs on campus.
While second-year QB Jake Merklinger didn't have a bad day at the office, it was MacIntyre who appeared to be sharper of the two. He enrolled early and is already making a name for himself in Knoxville. Merklinger entered the spring as QB2, but MacIntyre sure has people talking following his performance at Neyland.
2. WR Radarious Jackson
Another early enrollee turned heads? That'd be wide receiver Radarious Jackson, who came up with some fantastic grabs for the Vols over the weekend. His best was easily the No. 1 highlight of the spring game too, as Jackson reeled in an Odell Beckham-type grab for everyone to enjoy. Seriously, how in the world did he come down with this?
RAD JACKSON ARE YOU SERIOUS?! 🤯#GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/TO8TWYUK9H
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) April 13, 2025
That's downright incredible. Jackson signed with the Vols this past fall as a 4-star playmaker and the No. 30 wideout in the country. He's just a baby-faced freshman, but he let everyone know that he's got quite the future ahead of him with the SEC side.
1. Head coach Josh Heupel
Surprised by this one? By all accounts, you'd think Heupel would be among the losers of the day, as his star quarterback will be entering the transfer portal when things open up on Wednesday. Despite that, the UT leader could not have handled things better.
He called an early team meeting and reminded his guys inside of the locker room that no individual, including himself, comes before the entire team. His players heard his message loud and clear and everyone is ready to move forward. Tennessee will target a new signal-caller in the spring portal too, which will open the door for a new standout QB to join the squad. Things may look a bit dim for 2025 now, but Heupel surely has a new plan in place.