Josh Heupel addresses Tennessee's backup QB situation

Things could not have gone worse for Tennessee in Columbia. The Volunteers didn’t just lose to the Gamecocks 63-31 in a loss that ended their College Football Playoff hopes. They also lost quarterback Hendon Hooker, one of the brightest stars of the college football season, for the season with a torn ACL. With Hooker gone, Josh Heupel will now need his quarterback room to step to finish off the campaign.

Heupel spoke about the depth at the Vol’s QB spot during his press conference on Monday. He said they have two other players they feel comfortable with but that the team will rely on Joe Milton the same way they did Hooker over the team’s final two games.

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“Gaston (Moore) and Navy (Shuler) are two guys who have been in our system for awhile, Gaston in particular. With Joe, we’ve got to go play and gotta find a way to win this game. So we’ll use him as needed in the run game too,” said Heupel.

Milton came in after Hooker went down and threw for 108 yards and a touchdown in the game’s final minutes. In six games this season, Milton has now thrown for 573 yards and six touchdowns on a 69.7% completion rate.

Preparing as Tennessee’s QB2 has allowed Milton to grow into a better player and, in turn, to now be ready for this moment. It’s unfortunate that it came due to such a serious injury for Hooker, but Huepel believes this is Milton’s moment to show what he’s learned in his return to the starting lineup.

“Joe has grown a bunch. You guys have seen the way that he’s played when he’s been given the opportunity,” Heupel said. “He’s got really good command of what we’re doing. We don’t change what we do and he’ll be ready to go in this one.”

Tennessee will need to find a way to focus following Hooker’s devastating injury. That means they must rally around Milton as he prepares to lead them in their final two games. If they can do that, they’ll hopefully finish this season on a less sour note as they get ready for both Vanderbilt and their bowl game.