UCLA now has the experienced quarterback that head coach DeShaun Foster was looking for in the transfer portal.
Joey Aguilar, who spent the past two seasons at Appalachian State, will continue his collegiate career in Westwood, he announced Saturday evening on social media.
“UCLA is home, you know. Once they hit me up, instantly was interested. But coach Tino (Sunseri) and coach Foster were a big part of my interest,” Aguilar told Bruin Blitz about the decision.
The Bruins, who were led by fifth-year senior quarterback Ethan Garbers last season, also lost backup quarterback Justyn Martin to Maryland in the transfer portal. That left the program without a signal-caller who has started on the college level.
“We most definitely have to get a quarterback,” Foster said Dec. 4 of the team’s needs in the portal after unveiling his 2025 early-signing high school recruiting class.
Now, Foster will go into his second season with Aguilar, who has 25 career starts, as the presumed favorite to win the job.
It will also be the program’s first year under new offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tino Sunseri, who helped guide Indiana to the nation’s second-best scoring offense this past season.
Aguilar, who also spent two years at Diablo Valley Community College, was granted an extra year of eligibility following the blanket waiver granted Dec. 23 by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors to all JUCO athletes who otherwise would have exhausted their eligibility following the 2024-25 season.
The waiver stemmed from an injunction granted by a federal judge in Tennessee that allowed Vanderbilt quarterback and JUCO product Diego Pavia to pursue an additional year of eligibility.
“Once I saw that ruling I instantly started thinking about taking that year,” Aguilar said. “I didn’t accomplish what I wanted this year and felt one more year to give my all was the best option. It was a waiting game to getting an answer for being granted and once I got the call I was super excited. God has a plan and will always make a way!
“One more year is all I need. Playing college football at App State, I grew and learned a lot. I accomplished so much and feel there is so much more to accomplish as well! With this year I’m excited to see what the future holds and ready to get back to work.”
Aguilar also drew interest from California, Georgia, Ole Miss, Central Florida, Wake Forest, Washington State, Miami (Ohio), Charlotte, Tulane and Coastal Carolina.
UCLA, however, is the lone school that convinced him to take an official visit, which will take place Jan. 5-7.
For his career, the Antioch (Calif.) native has thrown for 6,760 yards and 56 touchdowns over the last two years and was the Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year in 2023.
In 2024, Aguilar completed 55.9% (218 of 390) of his pass attempts for 3,003 yards and 23 touchdowns with 14 interceptions.
On the ground, Aguilar also ran for 207 yards and two scores on 59 carries.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound signal-caller had a record-breaking first season with the Mountaineers in 2023. Aguilar set the single-season marks for passing (3,757 yards), touchdown passes (33), total offense (4,002 yards), completions (293) and pass attempts (460). His 13 games of 200 or more yards passing was also a single-season program record.
Aguilar attended Oakley (Calif.) Freedom before starting his collegiate career on the JUCO level.
The Bruins now have a collection of quarterbacks on the roster that also includes current freshmen Dermaricus Davis, Karson Gordon and Henry Hasselbeck, redshirt freshman Luke Duncan and fifth-year senior Nick Billoups.
Gordon, though, spent part of this past season cross training as a receiver.
In the 2025 signing class, UCLA has incoming four-star quarterback Robert McDaniel and three-star Colton Gumino arriving in January as early enrollees. McDaniel was the final piece to the class, flipping his prior commitment to Arizona on the second day of the early-signing period after a conversation with Sunseri.
Aguilar joins a group of transfer additions on offense that includes receivers Mikey Matthews (California) and Jaedon Wilson (Arkansas) and offensive linemen Eugene Brooks IV (Oklahoma), Courtland Ford (Kentucky) and Julian Armella (Florida State).
The Bruins also have commitments from linebacker Isaiah Chisom (Oregon State), defensive linemen Ka’eo Akana (Utah), Nico Davillier (Arkansas) and Ashton Sanders (Oklahoma) and defensive backs Robert Stafford (Miami), Cole Martin (Arizona State), Aaron Williams (Louisville), Bryon Threats (Central Florida), Key Lawrence (Mississippi), Andre Jordan Jr. (Oregon State), Benjamin Perry (Louisville) and Scooter Jackson (Utah Tech).
