Everyone knows who Tennessee football is going to be starting at quarterback on Saturday to open the new campaign against Syracuse. Yup, that'd be veteran signal-caller Joey Aguilar, who won the three-man battle during fall camp. However, no one knows who his backup is going to be.
The hope was that Josh Heupel would reveal that QB2 decision to open game week, but that's not going to happen. Instead, while speaking to reporters, Heupel said that everyone will find that out on Saturday when the team's official depth chart for the Syracuse game is released. This seems like a bit of a surprise. Is Heupel still torn on who he'll pick between George MacIntyre and Jake Merklinger?
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel on who QB2 is:
— Rocky Top Insider (@rockytopinsider) August 25, 2025
"You guys will find out on Saturday when the depth chart comes out."
Josh Heupel won't announce Tennessee's backup quarterback until game day vs. Syracuse
Again, we know Aguilar is going to lead the offense out onto the field when they take on the Orange, but if he needs to come out of the game for any reason on Saturday, who will take over the offense for him? This is something Vols fans have had on their minds for a little while, but Heupel isn't going to budge in terms of revealing that info.
It seemed like Marklinger had emerged as the clear backup, but MacIntyre also impressed both during spring ball and practices this summer. Heupel appears to be confident in both guys if either of their numbers are called this campaign, though no one wants to see Aguilar go down.
However, as tough as it is to think about, Heupel's decision could ultimately lead to someone transferring. We don't want to speculate on how things shape out, but if Merklinger finds himself as the third-string quarterback this year, then it might open the door to him entering the portal for the 2026 season.
Tennessee has 5-star commit Faizon Brandon on board, and he's widely considered the future of this program - that's something the QBs in town surely have in mind too. Getting the Aguilar decision out of the way was a primary focus for Heupel and Tennessee, but his backup call is also going to be massive for the program. Hey, he may have already made that decision, but good luck to anyone finding out who he picked before Saturday gets here.