Growing up in Pahokee and Orlando, Florida, Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton III was the oldest of seven children.
While being the older brother his six siblings looked up to, Milton took a natural leadership position within his household.
This has made the task of leading the Vols in his final season as a college athlete that much easier as he's already comfortable in the position.
"I've been that my whole life," said Milton. "I'm the oldest of seven. I've been that my whole life. I'm comfortable.""
TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM
Milton has had this mindset since he arrived at Tennessee. Even in stretches where he wasn't the starter, he knew it was his responsibility to be a leader.
The signal caller credits this to the seniority over his siblings, as well.
"I honestly, truly just I felt like that since I got here," said Milton. "Always felt like that even when I wasn’t a starter. That’s just me as a person, just being the oldest of seven, that’s just something that you just kind of just take over.”
While it's true that Milton has been a leader of the team since he arrived on campus, he didn't necessarily take over the team as his own.
This all changed following Hendon Hooker's late-season injury in 2022, though. With Hooker unable to play, Milton stepped in to lead the team in an even bigger role.
As Hooker's eligibility expired and Milton was set to start the next season, the team's preparation for the Orange Bowl looked a little different. Finally, Milton took control of the Vols as the team's unofficial main captain.
This was a switch that was clear to offensive coordinator Joey Halzle. The lead-up to the bowl game was dominated by Milton's new focus.
“It’s really been since bowl prep last year," said Halzle on when Milton took over the team. "When it was very clear at that point with, Hendon’s injury and everything that it was his team to take over. He didn’t shy away from it, but he also didn’t become fake and like change the way he was. He was just him and with a new, dedicated new spirit about it where he just said, all right, I’m responsible for this unit now I gotta make sure that it’s going the way to go.”
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Now that Milton is the face of the program and looks to lead the team to more success, his fame has also risen.
This national attention has even led to NIL deals. This includes one with Beats that helped him give headphones to each member of the team.
With the gift came a message written from Milton that encapsulates him as a leader.
This ability to help out his teammates is important to him. Not only does he have their backs on the field, but he also wants to help them out off the field in any way he can.
"I did my part of what I needed to do," said Milton on the partnership. "And then on the backhand of that, they said that they have some beats for the team and that’s something that I always like doing, helping these guys out any way possible."
Now, Milton will head Tennessee's offensive attack starting in Nashville on Sept. 2 in the opening match against Virginia. With one year of eligibility left, it's his final chance to leave an impression on NFL scouts and land himself on draft boards.
Milton isn't concerned about the outside noise, though. He just wants to play football.
"To be honest, I’m just ready to play football," said Milton. "I don’t see it no different. Do I have a chip on my shoulder? That’s just because I want to prove that to myself, that I’m good at this game and I can play for a long time. So other than that, man, I don’t look at the outside noise. I don’t."
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