Josh Heupel addresses Tennessee QB Joe Milton availability, Hendon Hooker

Tennessee rebounded from a loss to Pittsburgh in Week 2, dominating Tennessee Tech to the tune of 56-0. During the victory, Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel opted to play quarterback Hendon Hooker, while Joe Milton sat on the bench, still recovering from an injury sustained from a big hit against Pittsburgh.

It remains unclear which quarterback Heupel will play in the Volunteers’ upcoming matchup against Florida; he may even play both. After Hooker’s 199-passing yard, three-touchdown performance, in which he also managed 64 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown, it appears as though he may give Hooker the nod once more.

But in Wednesday’s SEC Coaches teleconference, Heupel addressed the status of both his quarterbacks, discussing their availabilities for Tennessee’s biggest test of the year to-date.

“No update at this point,” Heupel said of Milton’s health heading into the weekend. “About [the quarterback] room: there’s positives in all of those guys and what they’ve done, decision-making at times, being really accurate with the football, being decisive. I think first and foremost, we’ve got to take better care of the football at that position. That’s where our turnovers have happened on the offensive side of the ball. There are plays in the passing game that we’re capable of making from that position, too, and that is on the quarterbacks and wideouts.”

Tennessee has struggled to find consistent play under center, as both Hooker and Milton have seen their fair share of struggles. As Heupel mentioned, the offense has shown glimpses of what he believes the team is capable of; however, the quarterback duo has also made some bad mistakes via turnovers.

Through three games, Hooker has completed 70 percent of his passes for 392 passing yards, five touchdown passes and an interception. Milton, on the other hand, has completed 51 percent of his passes for 189 passing yards and one touchdown.

Heupel, the first-year head coach, had a quarterback competition brewing in the preseason, and eventually turned to Milton to open the season.

Milton spent three years at the University of Michigan, where he completed a cumulative 86 of 152 pass attempts for 1,194 yards, five touchdowns and six interceptions. Milton enrolled in Tennessee in June of 2021 following his departure from the Wolverines’ program.

Hooker, a transfer from Virginia Tech, is a redshirt senior who started threw for nearly 3,000 yards and rushed for over 1,000 more with the Hokies.

“Some real positives,” Heupel said, reflecting on Hooker’s first start for Tennessee last game. “(He was) decisive, accurate at times, did a good job using his feet at times, but the turnovers can’t happen. There were some plays in the pass game from in the pocket with wide receivers behind the secondary and not connecting on those. You have to, at some point, make those plays.”