Merk is entering the portal

#127
#127
CAVPUT said:
Aguilar is done here. Fans need to accept this. There's no chance UT will wait to see if the courts rule in his favor. No offense, but I'm not sure why this is so hard to grasp.
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Ruling comes Friday. UT can afford to wait and see.

If JA is not back for '26, then UT needs 2 QB's. At least one of them has to be a QB1 option.
 
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#128
#128
YankeeVol said:
Lol
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Could’ve been written better but he’s not that far off. Heup hasn’t developed a recruited QB yet. If we continue to bring in 5 stars and do nothing with them it’s not a great recruiting talking point.

Unfortunately this likely will continue given the Wild West portal. A few years ago we’d of taken our chances putting Merk or Mac on the field and letting them grow through on field experience (good and bad). Then you possibly have a great QB in a year or two. Now you just run to the portal for your best chance to win that given year.

I get it from a coaching standpoint. But it definitely has its pros and cons.
 
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#130
#130
voltoo said:
GA TECH , UGA or Clemson will take him.. Hyple has not developed a Freshman QB to start for the Vols since he became our coach. Mac might be the first but he want survive the SEC if he does not put on some weight.

Merklinger is athletic and should be a QB for a major school. QB’s have to transfer in to play at TN. This will hurt us recruiting at TN if some of the QB’s Hyple recruits don’t progress to starters.
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Yeah. He was horrible coaching Hooker and Milton.
 
#132
#132
EastTNVol6240 said:
Could’ve been written better but he’s not that far off. Heup hasn’t developed a recruited QB yet. If we continue to bring in 5 stars and do nothing with them it’s not a great recruiting talking point.

Unfortunately this likely will continue given the Wild West portal. A few years ago we’d of taken our chances putting Merk or Mac on the field and letting them grow through on field experience (good and bad). Then you possibly have a great QB in a year or two. Now you just run to the portal for your best chance to win that given year.

I get it from a coaching standpoint. But it definitely has its pros and cons.
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You people do realize that coaches “recruit” transfers right?
 
#134
#134
voltoo said:
GA TECH , UGA or Clemson will take him.. Hyple has not developed a Freshman QB to start for the Vols since he became our coach. Mac might be the first but he want survive the SEC if he does not put on some weight.

Merklinger is athletic and should be a QB for a major school. QB’s have to transfer in to play at TN. This will hurt us recruiting at TN if some of the QB’s Hyple recruits don’t progress to starters.
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I get it but as long as we have qbs who can win, I don’t really care about the model, though would obviously like the traditional development way to go
 
#137
#137
K-town Vol Fan said:
Why not? It's either that or play a Freshman. QB is the most important position in sports. I know it's not unheard of to start a freshman but it's also not ideal.
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Because we need SEVERE help on defense. We don’t have unlimited money or any huge oil donors like the TX schools. It doesn’t matter how good our QB is if our defense doesn’t improve significantly. Spending 3-5 million for a one year QB is silly and we aren’t in a position to do that. Remember Heupel has to spend big bucks to retain the guys he has.
 
#139
#139
SayUWantAreVOLution said:
I believe there's a pretty good chance G-Mac bounces this year if we grab a "projected starter" QB from the portal and Joey A comes back.

If G-Mac is QB3 AGAIN behind portal QB and Joey A, he's pushing his stock for the next level lower IMO.

Joey A probably is NFL clipboard material at best and you were QB3 to him for 2 years? Hmmm.
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If JA comes back then we’re not taking a QB from the portal.
 
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#140
#140
Hunerwadel said:
Managing rosters has become nearly impossible with NIL money and the portal. Building teams always took time and planning. It's hard to plan when you don't know who is going to be around and who isn't.
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Only made the college game more NFL like.

Still build your team though recruiting (the draft)

Plug and play through the portal (free agency)
 
#142
#142
This is business. Maybe Merck isn’t leaving because he just wants to start somewhere. Maybe the tea leaves read, there is no NIL money available for him next year. He is probably a smart guy. He realizes after 2 years, the NFL is probably not his future and making as much NIL as possible is a smart finacial decision. A great nest egg to start life after graduation. Don’t get attached to any recruit or young portal guys. They are just temporary employees. I like Mac. I have read he has great leadership skills. He was highly recruited by every big name school at one time. However he is just a name on the employee chart.
 
#143
#143
BigOrangeTrain said:
Dude you cannot be serious. Nico wasn’t the reason we were 10-2 and got to the playoffs. It was the defense and Dylan Sampson. Nico sucked royally in his first year starting. Sorry but Heupel has yet to develop a HS QB.
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You don't make the playoffs with a QB who sucks royally, especially coming out of the SEC. I know Nico didn't set the world on fire, but he played well enough to not lose us games too.
 
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#144
#144
RockyTop140 said:
It’s a good thing we gave him more reps this season than Gmac
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Haha. That was maddening.i assume they were doing him a solid by letting him get something in tape for teams, but not only was that not best for the team, it likely wasnt best for him and his prospects. If anything, the film will hurt his value.
 
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#147
#147
K-town Vol Fan said:
You don't make the playoffs with a QB who sucks royally, especially coming out of the SEC. I know Nico didn't set the world on fire, but he played well enough to not lose us games too.
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And we likely don’t win 8 games if our defense wasn’t elite. Yes you need a good QB but football is the ultimate team sport. Look at how good Jayden Daniel’s was. What did LSU win with him? Nothing.

Caleb Williams was a stud. What did Riley win with him? Nothing. You have to have a good defense. And we need to spend more on defense right now. We simply cannot afford to spend 3-5 million for a one year guy. Especially with a brand new DC and scheme.
 
#148
#148
YankeeVol said:
You people do realize that coaches “recruit” transfers right?
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Not the conversation that was being had. But you can argue with yourself about that one if you’d like.

You ain’t gotta like the facts, but they are what they are. We haven’t recruited, developed, and started a high school QB since this staff has arrived. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, not placing blame, just stating the facts. At some point as a HS recruit I’m sure you look at these things.

As said, I see both sides. Coaches are paid to win now. If that means a shiny new toy in the portal, then so be it. However, I do think it hurts overall development. Pre portal era you play one of those HS recruits, and let them learn on the field, then maybe you get a great QB for a year or two after a painful year starting them. Example, this year. Pre portal era we prob roll with Merk or Mac, and don’t find JA.

We’re not turning back time, so it is what it is. But the facts mentioned above still are facts.
 
#149
#149
EastTNVol6240 said:
Not the conversation that was being had. But you can argue with yourself about that one if you’d like.

You ain’t gotta like the facts, but they are what they are. We haven’t recruited, developed, and started a high school QB since this staff has arrived. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, not placing blame, just stating the facts. At some point as a HS recruit I’m sure you look at these things.

As said, I see both sides. Coaches are paid to win now. If that means a shiny new toy in the portal, then so be it. However, I do think it hurts overall development. Pre portal era you play one of those HS recruits, and let them learn on the field, then maybe you get a great QB for a year or two after a painful year starting them. Example, this year. Pre portal era we prob roll with Merk or Mac, and don’t find JA.

We’re not turning back time, so it is what it is. But the facts mentioned above still are facts.
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Here's the thing, IDGAF. Just win LOL.
 
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