HOOVER, Ala. - Jarrett Guarantano stood in New York's Times Square in April of 2015, ready to make a commitment to the college of his choice.
Tennessee was a finalist, as were Rutgers - the hometown favorites for the quarterback from Lodi, New Jersey - and Ohio State.
"This is my decision. Nobody else's," Guarantano proclaimed that day. "I worked too many mornings, too many late nights, not to do what's best for me. No more noise. No more clutter. No more distractions.
"I'm ready for what the future holds," he said, then added: "Knoxville, Tennessee, here I come."
It was considered then a huge recruiting win for then-Volunteers coach Butch Jones, as in theory the program would have an easy transition from then-senior quarterback Josh Dobbs to Guarantano, a highly regarded prospect at the time.
The Vols would win nine games the year of his commitment. They would follow that with another nine wins in 2016 while Guarantano redshirted, but from that point forward nothing has gone as anticipated.
Jones was fired after a 4-7 start to the 2017 season. He was replaced by current head coach Jeremy Pruitt, who scrapped the offense Guarantano had signed up for and implemented his own, a more smashmouth style.
While the offensive line has struggled to provide time for any quarterback, Guarantano has had his own struggles. He's shown flashes at times, evidenced by the 328-yard, two-touchdown performance in the 30-24 upset of Auburn last season, but it hasn't been what anybody thought - including himself.
But 18 starts into his career, he has thrown for 2,904 yards and just 16 touchdowns, and the team is 9-15 over those two seasons.
"From what I envisioned (when committing), nothing has happened, so it's definitely been a shock to me," Guarantano said Tuesday at the Southeastern Conference media days, "but I've learned from everything that's happened and I'm excited for what the future holds for myself. My perspective hasn't really changed. There's always been goals that I still have and they're still intact, so it's not a difference but I've learned a lot from those thoughts."
He did admit that the lack of early success in a "success now" society got to him early on in his career.
"Yeah, I was frustrated when I was younger, not getting the things I wanted, but I learned from it really, a maturation period," he said. "It was definitely a good thing that I went through it, because I needed it.
"I expected more success, and I think every kid that goes to college expects a lot of success and there's a culture shock."
Pruitt has laid down expectations for his junior quarterback, to be the leader of the program. Guarantano said he wasn't sure exactly what the head coach wanted a year ago but that the two are on the same page this season. Pruitt has done what he could do to help, replacing Tyson Helton - the 2018 offensive coordinator who became the Western Kentucky head coach after the season - with esteemed offensive coordinator Jim Chaney, who held the same title at Georgia the previous two seasons.
"I believe in Jarrett," Pruitt said. "Over the last 18 months, I've got to know who he is. He has lots of experience, he's a tough guy, he has plenty of arm strength, he's a good athlete and he understands the expectations. He's been a tremendous leader over the last six months of this offseason.
"He's more comfortable with everybody around him. I think he's grown confidence and he feels good about the relationship he has with (quarterbacks) Coach (Chris) Weinke, Coach Chaney. You can see with his rapport with his teammates, he has influence on them."
With the knowledge of having a year in Pruitt's culture and system, and understanding what the head coach wants, Guarantano spent most of the offseason working with renowned quarterbacks mentor Tony Racioppi. He was also given the opportunity to work at the Manning Passing Academy along with some of the top quarterbacks in the country. All of that has given him additional knowledge, knowledge he hopes to implement on the field as he expects to lead the Vols to their first bowl game since the 2016 season.
It's taken a while, but it sounds like he's ready for the challenge.
"My career has allowed me to mature, allowed me to grow," he said. "I remember two years ago when I stepped in that role I wasn't completely ready, and I didn't know it was like this. I was young and I definitely learned from that experience.
"I think the older I've gotten, I've started to learn to become that face of Tennessee, that guy that can lead the program."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.