I'd play George MacIntyre

the towel has already been thrown in for him.

there's literally no practical difference if we finish 9-3 or 7-5. we play the same games and get an irrelevant bowl game either way.

he needs to be shrewd and think of the future.

No coach or team would do that so does that say more about those teams or your opinions?
 
Heupel losing them with Aguilar will make his seat very warm early in 2026. Heupel losing them with QB’s who are the future of the offense will make his seat less warm going into 2026.

Going 8-4/9-3 this year doesn’t outweigh solving the dilemma of who the starter is gonna be in 2026 and going 7-5/8-4

Heupel is going nowhere, you are dreaming again Thelma. Matlock is on
 
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the towel has already been thrown in for him.

there's literally no practical difference if we finish 9-3 or 7-5. we play the same games and get an irrelevant bowl game either way.

he needs to be shrewd and think of the future.
It makes a big difference. If Faizon sees this attitude from UT, he has numerous options to move to a more stable coach and program.

Do you think Faizon Brandon wants to hitch his future to a program that would just blow off a bad year and give up?
 
Why? I’m not being a sunshine pumper but there’s still some stuff to play for this season—like winning in Gainesville for the first time in 20 years, possibly playing spoiler to Vanderbilt’s playoff hopes, finishing 9-3 rather than 7-5 and possibly losing recruits, etc.
 
Once again, nothing says "I will give my all for Tennessee" like a coach giving up on the season and looking to next year before playing one of your biggest rivals.

Give it up. You want Heupel to just blow off the rest of the season to develop a kid who may or may not (A TOTALLY UNPROVEN COLLEGE QB) be next years QB at a Top 25 school?

You ACTUALLY think that's the best coaching move to make? I'm actually laughing out loud at you.

How do you know if the QB is gonna be ready or not for 2026? You either get them meaningful reps in meaningless games which we have 4 of (including the bowl game) Or you feel you so confident in your ability as a coach that you just need spring practice to evaluate who your guy is.

There is no coach in the world worth a damn who think spring practice reps are more valuable test than actual game reps.

Heupel is determining how soon the temperature of his seat will heat up with how he treats the QB situation this offseason. And he has a much easier path to keeping it cool
 
No coach or team would do that so does that say more about those teams or your opinions?
I flat out guarantee there have been teams that have done this if you just care to look for them. it makes perfect sense to be focused on the guys who are sitting on your bench who are the future of the team.

what message does it send to have blind loyalty to a lame duck QB you literally just met a few months ago when you have guys you personally recruited to develop in your system when they could hit the portal at any moment.

those are the guys we need to be caring about.
 
How do you know if the QB is gonna be ready or not for 2026? You either get them meaningful reps in meaningless games which we have 4 of (including the bowl game) Or you feel you so confident in your ability as a coach that you just need spring practice to evaluate who your guy is.

There is no coach in the world worth a damn who think spring practice reps are more valuable test than actual game reps.

Heupel is determining how soon the temperature of his seat will heat up with how he treats the QB situation this offseason. And he has a much easier path to keeping it cool
I mean how do you know those two QBs are even gonna be here next year?
 
It makes a big difference. If Faizon sees this attitude from UT, he has numerous options to move to a more stable coach and program.

Do you think Faizon Brandon wants to hitch his future to a program that would just blow off a bad year and give up?
do you think Faizon is just going to ride the bench if he sees his coach have blind loyalty to a QB just because he's a senior? or is it more likely he hits the portal as soon as human possible???

like if Heupel starts Merklinger when he could start Faizon simply because of seniority or blind loyalty what will he think or do in you mind?
 
Considering Matthews and Staley are going to be here next year, it wouldn't hurt to get live reps with them all. If we are going 7-5/8-4 this year, better to do it with guys who will be here next year.
You can’t assume that either of those guys will be here next year. We would hope so as we are fans, but with the current climate of the college football system, nothing is a sure thing.
 
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It makes a big difference. If Faizon sees this attitude from UT, he has numerous options to move to a more stable coach and program.

Do you think Faizon Brandon wants to hitch his future to a program that would just blow off a bad year and give up?

You think Faizon is gonna get miffed at a coach choosing to start a younger guy over a senior when Faizon is a recruit who hasn’t even stepped foot on campus?

also this wouldn’t even be a discussion if Aguilar had another year here. He doesn’t. So playing for the future is exactly what would benefit someone like Faizon if he was on this team.
 
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You can’t assume that either of those guys will be here next year. We would hope so as we are fans, but with the current climate of the college football system, nothing is a sure thing.

Which is why giving them an idea of what the QB’s could look like might be a good idea. Just thinking out loud here.
 
How do you know if the QB is gonna be ready or not for 2026? You either get them meaningful reps in meaningless games which we have 4 of (including the bowl game) Or you feel you so confident in your ability as a coach that you just need spring practice to evaluate who your guy is.

There is no coach in the world worth a damn who think spring practice reps are more valuable test than actual game reps.

Heupel is determining how soon the temperature of his seat will heat up with how he treats the QB situation this offseason. And he has a much easier path to keeping it cool
If Merk and G-Mac get reps late in games, that's perfectly normal. Starting unproven talent in a game like FL in the Swamp because "he has 3 weeks to prepare them" is lunacy.

Get a grip. You don't toss the season, EVER. It makes the program look weak to your recruits.

We watched LSU fire Kelly and immediately thought, "they're tanking the season, let's raid them in the portal."

Yet here you are suggesting we do exactly that. Let's give up on the season and think of next year. What message does that send about UT football? Does it say: here's a program on the rise or here's a floundering program?
 
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do you think Faizon is just going to ride the bench if he sees his coach have blind loyalty to a QB just because he's a senior? or is it more likely he hits the portal as soon as human possible???

like if Heupel starts Merklinger when he could start Faizon simply because of seniority or blind loyalty what will he think or do in you mind?
I think Heupel starts the QB who gives us the best chance to win games. Period.

When that is no longer Joey A, someone else will start.
 
If Merk and G-Mac get reps late in games, that's perfectly normal. Starting unproven talent in a game like FL in the Swamp because "he has 3 weeks to prepare them" is lunacy.

Get a grip. You don't toss the season, EVER. It makes the program look weak to your recruits.

We watched LSU fire Kelly and immediately thought, "they're tanking the season, let's raid them in the portal."

Yet here you are suggesting we do exactly that. Let's give up on the season and think of next year. What message does that send about UT football? Does it say: here's a program on the rise or here's a floundering program?
who says that we are tanking the season? my expectations are to win the remainder of the games with the QB of the future.

after you watch Aguilar throw multiple dumb interceptions it's perfectly reasonable to lose faith in his ability to lead the team. let's see if GMac can do it right.
 
If Merk and G-Mac get reps late in games, that's perfectly normal. Starting unproven talent in a game like FL in the Swamp because "he has 3 weeks to prepare them" is lunacy.

Get a grip. You don't toss the season, EVER. It makes the program look weak to your recruits.

We watched LSU fire Kelly and immediately thought, "they're tanking the season, let's raid them in the portal."

Yet here you are suggesting we do exactly that. Let's give up on the season and think of next year. What message does that send about UT football? Does it say: here's a program on the rise or here's a floundering program?

Once again, you fault to understand we aren’t playing Florida in 6 days. We have 3 weeks to get ready with a game against a 3 win mid major.

I for one have faith that Heupel can get a highly touted 4/5 star quarterback prepared with 3 weeks of practice and a pay for game in between. You seem to think Heupel isn’t a good enough coach to do that. Not sure why you are so negative on Heupel.
 
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Heupel losing them with Aguilar will make his seat very warm early in 2026. Heupel losing them with QB’s who are the future of the offense will make his seat less warm going into 2026.

Going 8-4/9-3 this year doesn’t outweigh solving the dilemma of who the starter is gonna be in 2026 and going 7-5/8-4
I’ve got news for you. G Mac had a 2 win junior season. He’s never going to be the guy.
 
You think Faizon is gonna get miffed at a coach choosing to start a younger guy over a senior when Faizon is a recruit who hasn’t even stepped foot on campus?

also this wouldn’t even be a discussion if Aguilar had another year here. He doesn’t. So playing for the future is exactly what would benefit someone like Faizon if he was on this team.
Once again. The job is to win games. Heupel has about 9 million reasons to win games and playing a lesser talented QB with seniority isn't the issue here.

Merk and G-Mac aren't there. We saw all the Volnation Coaches insisting that JG was crap and Harrison Bailey (currently a walk on at FL, I think, after bouncing all over college football) and Brian Maurer (currently retired from football) were better. Guess what? They probably weren't.

Get over yourself. You don't have more coaching experience nor coaching expertise than UT has nor do you have ANY idea how ready to play at UT Merk and G-Mac are.

Applications are now being taken at several colleges for football coach. Shoot your shot, as you seem to think you're the reincarnation of General Neyland without having ever attended a UT practice.
 
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