“Nico Iamaleava could never”: Tennessee fans take jab at ex-Vols QB as Joey Aguilar crushes Syracuse in Week 1

NCAA Football: Aflac Kickoff-Syracuse at Tennessee - Source: Imagn
NCAA Football: Aflac Kickoff-Syracuse at Tennessee - Source: Imagn

Tennessee Volunteers starting quarterback Joey Aguilar was brought in to replace Nico Iamaleava, who controversially left the program and is now with the UCLA Bruins.

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The Volunteers faced the Syracuse Orange in their season opener. Fans hyped up Aguilar's performance after he found Braylon Staley for a touchdown in the first half.

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These fans think that Aguilar is a better quarterback than Nico Iamaleava.

"Tennessee got the better qb in the swap it seems.", said this fan.
"He’s already better than Nico.", said another fan.
"Nico could never.", said a third fan.
"Told people this man will be the best QB in the SEC.", said this fan.

Meanwhile, the following fans took note that Aguilar is a transfer from Appalachian State. While he did initially transfer to UCLA, he never suited up for the team, so his short time there could be ignored.

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"Don’t give UCLA credit for this man, they chose the gold digger over this man," said this fan.
"App State* since he never played a down at UCLA," said another fan.
"He’s an app state transfer," said a third fan.

Meanwhile, some fans were not as impressed.

"good for them winning a game they were supposed to win.", said this fan.
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Josh Heupel on Joey Aguilar's performance

In the first half of the Tennessee Volunteers' game against Syracuse, Joey Aguilar threw for 179 yards and a touchdown, as the Vols entered the halftime with a 17-point lead. Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said the following about Aguilar:

“I thought he handled himself really well. Been a good decision maker. Made some plays down the field. We’ve got to keep coming here. There’s some things we can clean up in all phases."

This was an offseason full of unwanted drama and massive uncertainty in the quarterback position for Tennessee. However, Aguilar's performance has given Vols confidence that life without Nico Iamaleava will be fine.

Tennessee Volunteers Fan? Check out the latest Tennessee Volunteers depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.

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Edited by Krutik Jain
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