Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton injured; relieved by Hendon Hooker

Tennessee starting quarterback Joe Milton on Saturday made his second-career start for the Volunteers, as the Michigan transfer was named the starting quarterback under first-year head coach Josh Heupel, but he did not make it through the first half before suffering an injury.

In Tennessee’s matchup with Pittsburgh, Milton stepped back in the pocket and took a huge hit from Panthers’ defensive lineman Keyshon Camp, forcing Milton to fumble the ball. The sack and subsequent fumble — which occurred with 9:13 left in the second quarter — forced Milton to the sidelines for further evaluation, while the Panthers gained possession of the ball.

Tennessee has not provided further update on Milton’s injury. The ESPN broadcast speculated that the injury was to Milton’s knee, as he appeared to bang knees with Camp. Milton finished the day completing seven of 12 pass attempts for 50 passing yards, no touchdowns and the aforementioned fumble. He also added a 54-yard rush earlier in the first half.

Milton was replaced by quarterback Hendon Hooker, a transfer from Virginia Tech that entered the season as a backup. Hooker was one of three quarterbacks competing for the starting role throughout Tennessee’s preseason, along with Milton and returning quarterback Harrison Bailey.

Hooker’s first possession did not return much for the Volunteers’ offense, which was forced to punt following a three-and-out. However, in his second possession, Tennessee put together a four-play, 68-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown — thanks to Hooker completing a 44-yard pass-and-run touchdown to Jimmy Calloway.

Tackling drills just got added to the schedule on Monday

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Heupel on picking Milton over Hooker

Head coach Josh Heupel said the decision to pick Milton as Tennessee’s starting quarterback was for a myriad of reasons, not just because he could do one specific thing better than the other candidates.

“First of all, I really do mean it when I say that I love that group,” Heupel said. “They push each other and are really positive. Our team and offensive group see and feel that energy. All three of them have a positive effect on the offense and team as a whole…I really believe that all three of them will have an opportunity to go play at a really high level if given the opportunity.

“At the end of the day, Joe’s grasp of our offense in a short amount of time, his growth during the middle portion of training and his acceleration in what we are doing with his physical attributes and decision making led us to put the ball in his hands for the first game.”

In Week 1, Milton showed glimpses of what he’s capable of, completing a 40-yard touchdown pass and running for one more in highlight fashion. But his performance was far from perfect in Tennessee’s 38-6 victory over Bowling Green. He completed only 11 of his 23 passing attempts for 139 yards and a touchdown.