Tennessee football and Josh Heupel thought they had their quarterback to lead them through the first couple of seasons of Heupel's tenure on Rocky Top, but it didn't exactly work out like they thought.
Joe Milton won the job ahead of the 2021 season, but it wasn't long before Hendon Hooker took over as the Vols' starting quarterback, forcing a QB battle in the middle of the 2021 season.
Former Tennessee offensive lineman Ollie Lane credits that to Milton's ability to perform in practice. At the same time, Hooker struggled more during practice, as opposed to coming out of his shell in a game.
"I've said that for years [that] Joe was a great practice player," Lane said on The Sports Source. "And that's no knock on his game at all. But Joe was great in practice. Looked amazing in practice. Hendon was not the best practice player. That's when he would sometimes make mistakes that were stupid mistakes in practice."
Hooker ultimately won the job and led the Vols through the 2021 and 2022 seasons, posting a 15-7 record in the games he started throughout that period. That includes a 9-2 record, almost leading the Vols to a College Football Playoff appearance in 2022.
"That competition, it was a weird competition because Joe really did win that competition in practice because he was the better quarterback in practice. But then, when you get into those game situations, practice isn't always like the game, so Hendon was just a true gamer.
"He knew how to step up to that stage and get it done. And that's not to say Joe didn't, but Joe could obviously put that on better in practice. And so that made it seem like he was the easy option (to be named the starter)."
Hooker proved he had earned the starting job as he continued to lead the Vols' offense and became one of the most efficient quarterbacks in Heupel's coaching career while running his system.
Heupel will be on his fourth starting quarterback in five years this year as he prepares to start another new quarterback. Whether it be UCLA transfer Joey Aguilar, redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger, or true freshman George MacIntyre, it could be a quarterback by committee this year until someone shows out in a game.