Jake Merklinger, a Savannah, Georgia native, served as Tennessee’s third string quarterback during his first season and went through spring ball earning a red shirt.

We’re now just one week away from our first official game week, meaning we’ll get our first look at Tennessee’s depth chart ahead of the Syracuse matchup in Atlanta. The paper handed out to the media is sure to be filled with plenty of -OR- designations as the staff won’t want to give too much away.

In the Orange and White game, both Jake Merklinger and MacIntyre got reps at QB, and one could argue that the Tennessee football true freshman (MacIntyre) had the better performance. In fact, his performance did enough to make fans question whether he was the QB choice following the game.

Our media partners at Volquest broke the news stating multiple sources have confirmed Aguilar won the starting job.

Jake Merklinger is competing with senior Joey Aguilar and freshman George MacIntyre for the Tennessee football quarterback job in the 2025 season.

With two weeks to go until the start of the 2025 season, the Tennessee Vols' starting quarterback battle is nearing its conclusion. UCLA transfer Joey Aguilar, redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger, and true freshman George MacIntyre are competing for the Vols' staring quarterback job.