NFL quarterback and former Tennessee Volunteer Josh Dobbs agrees with Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) on the University of Tennessee — but do they agree on the moon landing?
The pro football player has a degree in aerospace engineering, so the rocket scientist wasn’t missing the historic Artemis II launch Wednesday in Florida.
Ahead of takeoff, Dobbs posted on X: “We go back to the moon today. Historic” — to which Burchett offered a short response that seemed to say a lot about the congressman’s views on space.
“Back?” Burchett posted on X. And just like that, an unexpected tongue-in-cheek beef was born between sports and state.
“You can’t be one of those people,” Dobbs replied to Burchett.
Does Burchett really buy into the conspiracy that the United States has never actually made it to the moon?
No! Following the fun exchange, the congressman reminded his constituents that it was April Fools’ Day.
“Breaking: Check the calendar. It was sarcasm,” Burchett said.
So Dobbs, who is affectionately called the “Passtronaut,” is united with his fellow Vols fan in bringing attention to how important the Artemis II moon mission is.
Wednesday’s successful launch is sending the first crew back to the moon in more than 50 years. The spaceship will circle around the moon before returning to Earth.
Dobbs ended the online back-and-forth with a picture of Artemis II blasting through the atmosphere, inviting Rep. Burchett to the next NASA launch.
“Tim Burchett I’ll see you at the next one,” Dobbs said.
.@timburchett I’ll see you at the next one #believe pic.twitter.com/LCim3KdRBH
— Josh Dobbs (@josh_dobbs1) April 1, 2026
Why is an NFL player so enthralled with space? Dobbs majored in aerospace engineering at Tennessee, where he graduated with a 4.0 on top of the grueling Southeastern Conference football schedule.
In 2020, Dobbs interned with NASA at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where he got to witness a SpaceX rocket launch.
“I really felt the nervousness watching the countdown, knowing what those astronauts have gone through to get to this moment,” Dobbs told NBC Sports after the launch. “Being able to see the teamwork involved in preparation for this launch was incredible for me. It’s so much like a football team — you see how everyone doing their job fits together and makes something great happen. That’s what I really appreciated about the experience.”
The “Passtronaut” certainly lives up to his name. Dobbs started a foundation called “The ASTROrdinary Dobbs Foundation, Inc.” The organization’s slogan: “The Sky Is Not The Limit.”
Through his non-profit, he’s raising funds for youth-focused STEM initiatives and educational programs across Rep. Burchett’s state of Tennessee and beyond.
Despite a busy schedule, the 31-year-old has kept up with the Artemis program for years, telling NASA back in 2020 that he couldn’t wait for Americans to land on the moon … again.
“Obviously been a while since we’ve gone to the moon and obviously there’s a lot of reasons behind that. We were building the International Space Station, we were doing other missions. But for that to be a goal and just to see how that goal is basically the framework, the support to the next goal, the springboard to going to Mars, I think it’s extremely exciting,” Dobbs said.
Artemis II is expected to land April 10.
