How Joe Milton holds the key to Tennessee's hopes for the College Football Playoff

Few bigger Joe Milton fans exist in the United States than On3’s JD PicKell, who believes the bazooka-armed Tennessee QB is read to have a monster year stepping into Josh Heupel’s system. Of course, the man he’s replacing is not your average college quarterback. No, Hendon Hooker was a superstar in the orange and white and took the UT offense to heights they haven’t reached since Peyton Manning. Expecting similar things out of Joe Milton would be ridiculous.

However, a lot of PicKell’s confidence in the new Volunteer starter is from the trail Hooker blazed and the offense Heupel runs, since it will be very friendly to a vertical passer like Milton. So, while folks shouldn’t expect Hendon Hooker 2.0 with Joe Milton, JD PicKell believes they can expect high-level QB play for another year in Knoxville.

“Joe Milton is going to have Hendon Hooker-sized shoes to fill in terms of production, in terms of leading this offense,” says PicKell. “And this offense, now there’s a lot made about how quarterback-friendly it is. Maybe that’s true. But there’s also a lot required of the quarterback.”

Whether that’s calling out audibles or controlling the tempo, the Tennessee QB job is certainly a tough one in the Josh Heupel offense and Milton has to be prepared mentally every time he takes the field.

“I mean, they run a play it feels like every 10 seconds, like they’re going no huddle, no mercy. And they also asked the quarterback to get in the right play when they’re going so quickly. So you’re responsible for a lot if you’re the quarterback of Tennessee. So Joe Milton has to be able to pick up where Hendon Hooker left off. It’s a very big variable.”

For what Milton lacks in game experience and especially in the Heupel system, he makes up for in raw physical talent, where he even has an edge over Hooker.

“But for Joe Milton, I think just physically he has some things that are a little bit superior to what Hendon Hooker had,” added PicKell. “I’m not saying he’s a better quarterback than Hendon Hooker. Joe Milton is going to have a chance to show that. But I’m just talking about from physical traits. When God was fearfully and wonderfully making Joe Milton, I am just positive he spilled a bottle of arm strength on him. He has one of the most powerful arms in the entire country. You already knew that. They call him Bazooka Joe for a reason.”

If Bazooka Joe can master the playbook and operate at Josh Heupel’s preferred pace of play, there’s no reason to think the Vols won’t have another offensive juggernaut in store.