Joey Aguilar's journey to becoming the quarterback at the University of Tennessee is pretty hard to believe.
He graduated high school in 2019 with no college football offers. He went to the City College of San Francisco, where he redshirted, then had a season canceled due to COVID-19.
He considered becoming a firefighter, but with credit given to his mother for not letting him quit, he ended up at Diablo Valley College, another JuCo, where he moved in and out of the starting job while also battling injury.
Aguilar did enough to grab the attention of Appalachian State, and there, he only got the starting job after an injury to the previous QB1.
For two seasons at App State, Aguilar was a star, and he decided to transfer to UCLA. But then Nico Iamaleava went there, and Aguilar chose to instead take Nico's old spot with the Vols.
Through it all, he's carried a unique background with him.
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What is Joey Aguilar's ethnicity?
Joey Aguilar has roots in Mexico (paternal) and Puerto Rico (maternal).
He knows that, as a quarterback, he looks different than most who play the QB position.
"You don't really see too many Hispanic quarterbacks, so just trying to put it on for the culture," Aguilar once said in an interview.
Who is Joey Aguilar's dad?
Joey Aguilar's father is Jose Aguilar.
Jose is a first-generation Mexican-American.
He recently thanked Iamaleava for leaving Tennessee so that Joey could get this shot.
"My dad always told me to be grateful and be humble," Aguilar said before this season.
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Who is Joey Aguilar's mom?
Joey Aguilar's mother is Lydia Aguilar.
She's of Puerto Rican descent, and she supported Joey's whole journey.
So amazing to see !!! #6 https://t.co/TEuTd1tJ5h
— LydiaAguilar220 (@Lydia220Aguilar) September 12, 2025