On3 Roundtable: Joe Milton should be 'completely comfortable' in 2023

Joe Milton will once again be the starting quarterback for the Tennessee Volunteers heading into this fall. With five years of college football now under his belt, including two in Knoxville, Volquest’s Brent Hubbs sees this sixth campaign as a comfortable space for him to be.

Hubbs addressed that point with JD PicKell on On3 Roundtable. He said a third-year within Josh Heupel’s offense should make Milton feel right at home on the field next season. Add in some weight loss as well as the lessons he learned from Tennessee’s former starter and Hubbs believes he should be in for a big year on Rocky Top.

“Well, he should be completely comfortable in an offense for the first time. You know, you look at where he has bounced around? He’s in the same system now for the third straight year,” Hubbs said. “I think that’s going to be — should pay huge dividends for him.”

“He’s 10 pounds lighter,” added Hubbs. “(And) I think he learned a lot from Hendon Hooker in terms of how to work and what he needs to do.”

Milton has thrown for over 2,500 yards and 17 touchdowns over his 30 collegiate games. Over half of each have come since arriving from Michigan. In his 17 games as a Volunteer, he’s thrown for 1,346 of his passing yards and 12 of his passing touchdowns.

However, if anything, Hubbs’ main concern for Milton heading into this fall is his capability as a leader. That was an area where Hooker excelled as he created a buy-in effect across the roster. With his new level of confidence and relief, he says that that is the next area that Milton must conquer as Tennessee’s quarterback.

“This is a critical three months here for Joe Milton from a leadership standpoint. Hendon Hooker drug everybody into the complex,” Hubbs said. “There was an expectation that you were in the complex working because that’s where Hendon was going to be. The question is can Joe Milton create the same energy and the same mentality with this team this offseason that Hendon Hooker created? I think Joe is in a great spot mentally right now. But, you know, he’s got to go out and prove it. I think we all know that. But he has more confidence than he’s ever had coming out of that Clemson win.”

This is now Milton’s moment to step into the spotlight and make something happen as Tennessee’s QB1. With all this growth behind him and only a few more strides to make too, Hubbs is expecting the most out of Milton in 2023.