Big Orange Report May 15, 2025

 


Aguilar Arrives

Transfer quarterback Joe Aguilar was scheduled to arrive in Knoxville on Monday after clearing up his academic obligations at two schools. He dropped his classes at UCLA and completed his on line work with Appalachian State in order to move to Tennessee earlier than expected. The quarterback competition gets underway next month and there is no guarantees for Aguilar and he must beat out the two young signal callers that are both eager to battle for playing time.
Coach Josh Heupel and offensive coordinator Joey Halzle will now offer the senior transfer a crash course in the schemes and blueprints involved in the Volunteer offense. Aguilar (6-3, 220, 4.6) brings experience to town after being a two-year starter at App State and some confidence that he can succeed against higher caliber competition after UCLA grabbed him from the transfer portal after last season.
At App State Aguilar threw for 6760 yards and 56 touchdowns in just two autumns. He passed for at least 200 yards in all 24 starts and topped over 300 yards in six games. He was named the most valuable player at the Cure Bowl in 2023. In that game he threw for 211 yards against Miami (Ohio) from the Mid American Conference.
SoftVols Preparing for the NCAA Tournament
Following a quick exit in the SEC tourney, Coach Karen Weakley and her team are working to re-group and make a deep run into the national tournament. The two things that have hampered this team for most of the season got them beat against Arkansas. The offense was feeble and two costly errors allowed the Razorbacks to plate six unearned runs.
Karlyn Pickens, who has now been named Pitcher of the Year in the Southeastern Conference for two consecutive springs, was victimized once again by anemic batting and shaky defense. In six of her losses this year, the hard throwing right hander has not yielded an earned run in any of those games. This spring, Pickens struck out 231 batters in 174 innings of work. She yielded just 105 hits and boasted one of the top three earned run averages in the nation at 0.92.
Seven Seed
The Lady Vols were tabbed as the seventh seed in the NCAA brackets which means they can stay home for two series, assuming they win the first. Tennessee will open play on Friday against Miami (Ohio) with the game set to be televised on the SEC network at 12:30 on Friday. Ohio State and North Carolina square off in the second contest in this region. The Buckeyes are one of the top home run hitting teams in the nation this year.
If Tennessee prevails in this double elimination regional, then they will face the winner of the region featuring 10 seed LSU in Baton Rouge. The Tigers will have to get past Nebraska and ace right hander Jordy Bahl in order to advance to Knoxville. Bahl was a two time national champion at Oklahoma before transferring back to her home state school.
Baseball Limping to the Finish Line
The defending national champions, the Tennessee Volunteers have struggled through a tough five weeks, losing five of six three game series against conference opponents. The Vols have one regular season, three game set remaining this weekend at Arkansas before the SEC tournament gets underway on the 20th of this month.
The starting rotation has been very inconsistent, other than left hander Liam Doyle, the best pitcher in the SEC this year. Doyle has a 9-2 record with a 2.11 earned run average and has fanned 127 batters in 75 innings of work.
Huntingdon's Hunter Ensley has paced both the offense and defense this spring. He is hitting .355 and also leads the team in doubles with 15 and RBI with 58. 

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