‘That’s something he’s had to get used to’ – Joey Aguilar is dealing with the same hurdle Hendon Hooker faced as a rookie in the NFL
Former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Joey Aguilar wasn’t selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Aguilar, however, quickly signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent once the draft was over.
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joey Aguilar is facing the same hurdle as a rookie in the NFL that fellow former UT quarterback Hendon Hooker faced when he first turned pro.
Aguilar, who spent one season at Tennessee after transferring from UCLA, wasn’t selected in the 2026 NFL Draft, but he quickly signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent.
The former Vol is taking part in his first rookie minicamp this week, and that means that he’s learning all about quarterback cadences in the NFL.
“I think Joey’s done a nice job of learning a lot of information in a short period of time,” said Jaguars head coach Liam Coen. “Especially [since it’s] so much different than he’s used to. Just from a cadence standpoint, that’s something that he’s had to get used to doing over the last 48 hours.
“I think he did a nice job of running the show, if you will. I mean, these weren’t all just running plays, either. … And I think he did a nice job operating (the offense). I thought he threw it better today, probably. He had never thrown to these guys ever. It’s hard when you’re asking them to be perfect.”
Aguilar, like most college quarterbacks, mostly relied on a clap at the line of scrimmage, instead of a cadence.
Former Tennessee Vols QB Hendon Hooker also had to improve his cadence in the NFL
Aguilar isn’t alone in needing to improve his cadence as a rookie in the NFL.
Hooker, who spent two seasons at Tennessee, heard some trash talk about his cadence from Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell a couple of years ago.
“I have no idea,” said Hooker to The Jet Press earlier this offseason when asked why college quarterbacks clap. “The more that I think about it, the more I’m like, ‘That’s so dumb.’ Because when I was in college, I think we only used cadence one year when I was at Virginia Tech, and I was clapping on everything else. And then when I got to the NFL, Dan Campbell was like, ‘Bro, your cadence sucks. You need to go work on your cadence.’
“Every time we had a situational practice where we’re trying to draw the defense offsides, Dan would go, ‘Hooker, get in there.’ And I would try to draw them offsides. If I didn’t draw them offsides, I had to do 50 pushups. … I came a long way from just having a rookie cadence to having a real cadence.”
This isn’t something that’s unique to quarterbacks from Tennessee.
Former NFL head coach Jon Gruden has made sure to point out in recent years how much he hates that most college quarterbacks use a clap instead of a cadence.
I wouldn’t expect things to change for college quarterbacks anytime soon. The transfer portal has led to rosters that change dramatically from year to year — and rosters that also don’t feature much depth — which makes the clap more efficient than teaching a new quarterback a cadence every year.