Three games into the new season and there are a lot of things people are learning about Tennessee football. At the top of the list has to be that Joey Aguilar is for real, as he's quickly looking like one of the top quarterbacks in the SEC this campaign.
This isn't what a lot of people expected, with the list including Urban Meyer. Before the season got started, Meyer basically wrote Tennessee off and made it seem like a disastrous fall was going to be on the way thanks to Nico Iamaleava bolting for UCLA.
Chris Brazzell II could end up helping Tennessee football flip a 5-star Oregon commit
Since then, though, the Vols are 2-1 and ranked the No. 15 team in the country, while the Bruins are 0-3 and fired their head coach. Meyer knows what he said was foolish and he's now owning up to his terrible take. Yup, Vols fans are going to enjoy this:
NEW: Urban Meyer has declared the Nico Iamaleava, Joey Aguliar exchange as the 'worst trade in the history of trades'📉
— On3 (@On3sports) September 18, 2025
“I was the first guy when Nico left, I said, ‘D-U-N dun. It’s over in Knoxville’ ...I was dead wrong.”
(via @3xOptionShow) https://t.co/Djm0vIY37l pic.twitter.com/WiaIXxWY7w
Urban Meyer finally wakes up on how talented Joey Aguilar is for Tennessee football
On paper, sure, things seemed like they were going to be a disaster for the Vols after Nico packed his bags and left Knoxville. Iamaleava was a 5-star signee and he had just helped Tennessee reach the College Football Playoff for the first time ever.
The 'QB trade' resulted in Aguilar signing with Tennessee, but he was previously the starter at App State for two seasons. Who even is this kid? That's the question a lot of people had on their minds when it was revealed that he was making the move to UT.
Through three games, however, Aguilar has been close to perfect. The two interceptions against Georgia in the heartbreaking loss were a bit disappointing, but he managed to throw for four touchdowns and he added another score on the ground.
Aguilar has been better than anyone could have imagined, while there's speculation that Iamaleava could end up being one and done with UCLA and enter the transfer portal soon enough. Meyer is showing Aguilar and Tennessee the respect they deserve. Better late than never, we suppose.