KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Fourteen Tennessee VFLs showcased their skills in front of 70-plus NFL scouts and personnel as the Volunteers held their annual Pro Day inside Anderson Training Center on Tuesday afternoon.
“Pro Day, it’s a great time to see our guys kind of culminate and finish a career,” said head coach Josh Heupel. “Guys that are on the back end of their career, you look at a guy like Alvin Kamara that’s back here yesterday with our team. These are the guys that are going to continue to come back and pay it forward to the guys that are inside of our program. I can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done here at Tennessee with our staff, and I was really excited and happy with the way they performed today.”
All 32 NFL teams were in attendance at Pro Day, and VFLs returning from injury stood out. Quarterback Joey Aguilar, who led the SEC with 274.2 passing yards per game, underwent a procedure in early January and went through the route tree on the outdoor fields. He connected with the SEC’s leading wide receiver All-SEC Chris Brazzell II once again.
“It was nice,” Aguilar said. “I wish we had a little more time to get our timing back down. We were separate for a little while, but we started getting our connection back a little later. Especially for me, that was one of the first times I’ve thrown live routes in a while, with my throwing rehab. It felt good to see him out there and throw him the ball again.”
Aguilar arrived on Rocky Top in late May, and he credited the coaching staff with the crash course of preparing him to be a starter in the SEC.
“Shoutout to (Josh Heupel, Joey Halzle, Jared Peery and Landry Jones) for the time they poured into me for the short amount of time I was here. It was a good experience, and I’m thankful for these coaches.”
NFL first round cornerback prospect Jermod McCoy illustrated no signs of injury after not playing last fall. McCoy, who tore his ACL while training in January 2025, did not participate in the on-field workout at the NFL Combine, but he put on a show Tuesday. McCoy clocked a blazing 4.37 40-yard dash, and he produced 38-inch vertical jump and a broad jump of 10 feet, 7 inches. His elite speed, fluid movement and agility carried over into the defensive back drills where he shined.
“I don’t think people understand how much Rocky Top means to me,” Hood said. “It’s just the love from the fans, just everything. In totality, all the people. It’s just a great place, an amazing place. I would say to any recruit out there, if you give your all for Rocky Top, they’re going to love you back. Definitely just overwhelmed with emotions, how this place helped me and how I want to help this place.”
Edge rusher Joshua Josephs posted an impressive 38.5-inch vertical jump, while Brazzell II displayed his versatility running a full route tree and illustrating his speed. Brazzell clocked a 4.37 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine last month.
Multiple VFL NFL standouts were in attendance Tuesday, including Byron Young of the Los Angeles Rams, Cade Mays of the Detroit Lions, Jerome Carvin of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Elijah Simmons of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and McCallan Castles of the Green Bay Packers. Mays signed a mega three-year deal with the Lions earlier this month, while Young was selected to his first Pro Bowl in his third season. Alvin Kamara of the New Orleans Saints attended Monday’s practice.
The Pro Day participants now turn their attention to the 2026 NFL Draft, which will be held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.
Earlier Tuesday, the 2026 Vols held a full-pads workout, marking their 10th practice of the spring. Tennessee will hold its second spring scrimmage on Thursday in Neyland Stadium before breaking for Easter. The scrimmage is closed to the public.
Tennessee Football Press Conference | March 31, 2026
Head Coach Josh Heupel
Opening statement…
“Pro Day, it’s a great time to see our guys kind of culminate and finish a career. Fourteen guys and their families back here inside of our building. A lot of fun to see them go execute, compete and perform the way that they did today. Guys that are on the back end of their career, you look at a guy like Alvin Kamara that’s back here yesterday with our team. These are the guys that are going to continue to come back and pay it forward to the guys that are inside of our program. Can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done here at Tennessee with our staff, and was really excited and happy with the way they performed today.”
On seeing Jermod McCoy back on the field…
“Looked like Jermod out there today. From his 40 to vertical jump, did a great job testing, which we all anticipated. Great to see him back at 100 percent. Dealing with the adversity of last year and everything that he had to do to get back, I was just really proud of how he handled that process and ultimately how he performed today, setting himself up to have a great draft day.”
On Joey Aguilar throwing the football after an offseason surgery…
“You look at where he’s at, he hasn’t been throwing the football except for a few weeks here post-surgery. I thought he performed really well, just throwing the football, so his best is still coming in this rehab process. I know that he’ll do a great job wherever he goes, whenever it is, once he gets into camp. Who he is as a competitor and how smart he is, he’ll be ready to go play at a really high level.”
On Colton Hood’s impact on the Tennessee program…
“We appreciate Colton being a part of this team and this program, too. An athlete that does it the right way. Coming in May, learning what we’re doing, learning what it means to be a Vol on a day-to-day basis, but then also how he impacted the guys around him. Smart, tough, relentless competitor that cares about the people around him. You look at his performance today and at the Combine, he’s setting himself up to have a great career.”
On what this program has sold to the NFL over the last five years…
“I think they know what they’re getting out of a guy from here. The tape is the tape, but they know the level of accountability that we have inside of our program, how we approach every single day. Their ability to be the same competitor every single day, what they get exposed to on the football knowledge part of it, I think they understand they’re getting a consistent type of player.”
On the program’s success with portal players becoming NFL prospects…
“I think high school guys, portal guys, however you end up here, they’ve seen the fruits of being inside of this program. The physical development, the mental development, how we approach things and how that translates to setting themselves up to have a great career on the back end of their college career.”
On what clicked for Chris Brazzell II after changes made in the passing game…
“I think as much as anything, it’s just the continued growth of the man, the maturity, and then the football understanding. And then, continued growth of the fundamental technique traits that you need at your position. Chris did that. The way he approached his off-season, the summer, set himself up to go take advantage of the traits that he has and performed at an elite level last year.”
On the strongest trait that makes Chris Brazzell II an NFL prospect…
“I don’t think that there’s just one. His length is a great attribute. He’s got speed that’s rare at that size, and then his ability to be extremely loose, to sink and get out of cuts. His catch radius over the middle of the field, or a deep ball down the sideline. He’s got some unique physical traits, and if you put that with his playmaking ability, those are hard to find.”
DB Colton Hood
On his takeaways from his performance at Pro Day…
“I think I did a good job. I cut my 40 (yard dash) down some, but I definitely was expecting something a little bit faster. Something still I didn’t do right with my start, but that’s how it goes. I did a good job, and just getting better. That was my thing, coming out here, competing and getting better.”
On what his 40-yard dash time was and what was his overall goal…
“4.41. I was trying to get below (4.4), sub-4.”
On how the draft process has been for him…
“It’s just been a dream. Something that you dream about as a little kid. I would have never, not ‘never imagined,’ because I kind of had a feeling that this was going to be my (path), but it’s just so surreal being in it right now. Just being able to live out my dream, that little kid that was in his room, looking at the ceiling just thinking about what it could be, to being here now. It’s definitely surreal.”
On what this past year has meant as a member of the Tennessee football program…
“It’s meant a lot. I don’t think people understand how much Rocky Top means to me. It’s just the love from the fans, just everything. In totality, all the people. It’s just a great place, an amazing place. I would say to any recruit out there, if you give your all for Rocky Top, they’re going to love you back. Definitely just overwhelmed with emotions, how this place helped me and how I want to help this place.”
On how Tennessee has made an impact on him…
“I would say just the love. Just the love shown to me from everybody. All the coaches, all the fans, just all the people around. I would say I’ve never been welcomed in somewhere (like at Tennessee). Even my teammates, they welcomed me in as soon as I got here. They never looked at me as a threat. They always looked at me as a brother, so definitely that. It’s the love, that’s it.”
On what NFL teams he has upcoming visits with…
“I do, I have a good bit. I’m not going to disclose, but yes, I have a good bit.”
QB Joey Aguilar
On going through the Pro Day process and what it means to him…
“It’s awesome. (After) the situation that happened, to finally come out here and pursue one situation in this league. The connections that I’ve made during the Combine with teams and all the Zooms I’ve been having throughout these four weeks that I’ve been training, it’s awesome to come out here and show the guys, you know, I’m not healthy yet, early in my throwing rehab, but the ball is coming out really well. I was excited, I felt good. Wish it could have been in Neyland one last time, but it is what it is.”
On how Tennessee has prepared him for this moment after just one year with the program…
“A lot. Shoutout to (Josh Heupel, Joey Halzle, Jared Peery and Landry Jones) for the time they poured into me for the short amount of time I was here. Landry has helped me a lot through this process. I met with him one-on-one a lot throughout the season. Especially during the time of the unknown of not knowing if I was going to come back here or leave for the league. He was an NFL vet, spent a lot of time in the league, and he was kind of giving me tips on what to expect, what to do. That helped me at the Combine as well, because up-and-had to leave. It was a good experience, and I’m thankful for these coaches.”
On throwing to Chris Brazzell II and reestablishing their connection during Pro Day…
“It was nice. I wish we had a little more time to get our timing back down. We were separate for a little while, but we started getting our connection back a little later. Especially for me, that was one of the first times I’ve thrown live routes in a while, with my throwing rehab. It felt good to see him out there, throw him the ball again. I wish we would’ve got one more deep ball in though.”
On how the draft process has been as a whole…
“It’s super busy. I’ve been having a lot of calls, every day throughout the week. Saturday and Sunday are probably my only days off, I’ll go out there and golf. If you guys follow me, you probably see. It’s been busy, but it’s been fun. I’ve had really good conversations with everyone I’ve talked to, and everybody encourages me. If I could work with them, that would be great; but if not, they wish me the best. It’s been a fun time for sure.”
