Former Alabama QB Greg McElroy leaves no doubt on how he feels about Joey Aguilar's potential return to Tennessee in 2026
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
The Tennessee Vols are hoping that quarterback Joey Aguilar is granted an additional season of eligibility so he can return to Rocky Top in 2026.
Aguilar, who has only played three seasons of NCAA college football (he also played two seasons of junior college football at Diablo Valley Community College), won a temporary restraining order against the NCAA’s junior college eligibility rules earlier this month.
A hearing is set for Feb. 13 to determine whether Aguilar will be granted a preliminary injunction, which would allow him to play this fall (the NCAA could still appeal the decision if Aguilar wins).
If Aguilar is deemed eligible, he’ll play the 2026 season as a 25-year-old, which hasn’t sat well with some folks in the media.
Former Alabama QB Greg McElroy gives his thoughts on Joey Aguilar playing in 2026
Former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback turned ESPN college football analyst Greg McElroy caught some heat from Vols fans last season for some comments he made about Aguilar.
McElroy, however, may have redeemed himself with the Tennessee fan base with his take on Aguilar this week.
The former Alabama quarterback said this week on Always College Football that he hopes to see Aguilar “back in Tennessee orange” in 2026.
McElroy also seemed to suggest that Aguilar returning for another season could turn Tennessee into a legitimate “contender”.
“As an analyst and as a fan of the chaos, and as someone that has a podcast multiple times a week, and a radio show and just loves the sport and loves that the news cycle continues on and on, I love it at the end of the day,” said McElroy. “I want to see the best players on the field at the end of the day. I want to see (Ole Miss QB) Trinidad Chambliss back in college football, because he’s an electric talent. I think he’s so much fun to watch.
“I want to see Joey Aguilar back in Tennessee orange, because he’s a warrior, man. He took the long road to the top — a self-made guy that started out at the lowest levels and has progressed all the way up to some of the highest levels, and has had a remarkable story…By the time next Monday’s show rolls around, we’ll be talking about two frontrunners, potentially for the 2026 Heisman (if Chambliss and Aguilar win their cases this week), or we’ll be wishing them luck in the NFL. Crazy times we’re living in, but it’s a big week when it comes to assessing whether or not we add a couple more teams to our contender series for 2026.”
Older quarterbacks have been a thing, for various reasons, in college football for a long time. Chris Weinke, for example, won a national championship at age 27 and a Heisman Trophy at age 28 (ironically, he beat out Vols head coach Josh Heupel). I’m not sure why some talking heads are losing their minds that Tennessee could have a 25-year-old quarterback this fall.
McElroy may be a surprising ally for Vols fans in Aguilar’s fight for eligibility, but he’s an ally nonetheless.
window.addEventListener(‘message’, function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll && event.data.totalpoll.action === ‘resizeHeight’) {document.querySelector(‘#totalpoll-iframe-1476’).height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector(‘#totalpoll-iframe-1476’).contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: ‘requestHeight’}}, ‘*’);
This story was originally published by A to Z Sports on Feb 10, 2026, where it first appeared in the Nashville section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos