Tennessee Football: Joe Milton’s debut vs. Bowling Green was concerning

As Tennessee football’s 2021 season kicked off, Joe Milton was looking like the right pick at quarterback for the Volunteers, completing eight of his first nine passes, taking a 14-0 lead halfway through the first quarter.

Bowling Green didn’t look to have an answer for the Michigan transfer who lost his starting job in Ann Arbor because while he could throw the ball a mile, his accuracy and touch just weren’t there.

Milton decided to pick a program without a true starting quarterback and while Harrison Bailey was the only returning quarterback yet he had no experience. Hendon Hooker also transferred in from Virginia Tech, but many thought the battle was going to come down to Milton and Bailey and when the former won the job, it opened some eyes.

Maybe he had fixed his glaring flaws. Maybe he was a new quarterback, nothing like he was at Michigan. Maybe he just needed a change of scenery.

Early on against Bowling Green, all of those looked to be likelihoods.

And then the first quarter ended. Milton went from “wow, he might be really good here” to “now I get why Michigan benched him.”

Milton finished the game with 140 yards and a touchdown on 11-of-23 passing and he added 44 rushing yards and two more scores on the ground. His numbers weren’t awful, but you have to consider the opponent. Bowling Green was considered one of the worst teams in the FBS this season — seriously, like bottom-five in the nation — and he struggled.

This should concern Josh Heupel and the Volunteers moving forward.

Tennessee football needs to open up the competition again

Although having a quarterback controversy into the first month of the regular season is less than ideal, it’s still important that the right guy starts.

Hooker got some snaps near the end of the game and completed his only pass for five yards but Bailey didn’t play. Tennessee needs to give both guys a shot to prove themselves moving forward by opening the quarterback competition up again.

Maybe it was just first-game jitters in a new environment, but Milton struggled against a really, really bad Bowling Green team. That’s concerning.