Joe Milton gets motivation from national writer who loves throwing shade at Tennessee Vols
CBS Sports college football writer Dennis Dodd never misses an opportunity to take a shot at the Tennessee Vols. Whether it's suggesting that true freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava isn't worth the $8 million NIL deal he allegedly received before signing with Tennessee or incorrectly telling readers in 2021 that UT football wouldn't be relevant again anytime […]
CBS Sports college football writer Dennis Dodd never misses an opportunity to take a shot at the Tennessee Vols.
Whether it's suggesting that true freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava isn't worth the $8 million NIL deal he allegedly received before signing with Tennessee or incorrectly telling readers in 2021 that UT football wouldn't be relevant again anytime soon in the SEC, it seems like Dodd is always throwing shade at the Vols.
So it shouldn't come as a surprise that Dodd ranked Tennessee lower than most in his latest top 25 rankings while also taking a subtle shot at redshirt senior quarterback Joe Milton, UT's presumed starter this fall.
Dodd has the Vols at No. 16 in his preseason top 25 (most analysts have Tennessee in the No. 8 to No. 12 range).
FromCBS Sports: Joe Milton can throw it to the moon. Just don't ask him to hit the moon. That's another way of saying Tennessee's QB has accuracy issues. It's an interesting angle to Tennessee's reemergence. Milton was the Orange Bowl MVP, but Alex Golesh — the offensive coordinator who worked magic with Hendon Hooker — is gone. Expect similar magic with the respected Joey Halzle moving up from quarterbacks coach. There will be plenty of explosiveness on the perimeter despite the loss of Cedric Tillman and Biletnikoff Award winner Jalin Hyatt. Squirrel White and Bru McCoy should continue to be impact receivers.
It's that little unnecessary shot at Milton that should serve to motivate Tennessee's starting quarterback in 2023.
I can understand some concern about Milton's accuracy after he struggled with those issues at Michigan. But now that he's settled into Josh Heupel's system (with superior quarterback coaching at UT), those issues have seemingly faded. Milton passed for 971 yards in 2022 (which includes his starts in the final two games of the season) and completed 65 percent of his passes. The Florida native has yet to throw an interception during his time at Tennessee (144 pass attempts). Maybe Dodd just isn't paying close attention, but the narrative he's pushing is lazy.
Former Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker said earlier this offseason that Tennessee plays with a chip on its shoulder because of all the disrespect the program receives. Milton should this slight from Dodd as added motivation in 2023. Not that MIlton needs it, but like Pro Bowl quarterback Joe Burrow said during last year's playoffs, if it's there, you might as well use it.
