Tennessee still hasn’t locked in its quarterback for Saturday’s showdown with Alabama, but the momentum is pointing toward George MacIntyre.
Faizon Brandon remains in the mix, and Josh Heupel could still turn back to the original starter. But the bigger question entering the week is Brandon’s shoulder.
He was hurt against Texas, gutted out the rest of that game, then played nearly a half against Auburn before Tennessee pulled him. The next week, he barely practiced and was available only as an emergency option at Arkansas.
That picture is changing. Brandon was reportedly back on the practice field to start the week, and ESPN’s Pete Thamel said Tuesday that his reps are increasing. Even with that progress, Thamel described MacIntyre as the favorite to start and said he’s in position to make his second career start, this time against the Tide.
“As the week goes on here, both Faizon Brandon and George MacIntyre have gotten reps for Tennessee,” Thamel said. “There has been no decision definitively made on who is going to start the game against Alabama.
As of right now, as we sit here on Tuesday afternoon, MacIntyre is the presumptive favorite to get the start. Obviously, Brandon is still dealing with that shoulder injury from the Texas game.
He was extremely limited in practice last week. He’s ramped up his reps this week.
We will see if and how much he’ll be able to go come Saturday. For now, MacIntyre appears to be in the driver’s seat for his second career start, and this one would be against the Tide.”
MacIntyre already got one meaningful audition last week at Arkansas, where he helped Tennessee to a road win. He finished 18-of-29 for 247 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He was also sacked twice and lost a fumble.
Tennessee heads into the Alabama game as an underdog at home. FanDuel listed the Tide as 8.5-point favorites Tuesday afternoon, with Alabama at -365 on the money line and Tennessee at +285.
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC. Sean McDonough will handle play-by-play, Greg McElroy will provide analysis, and Katie George will work the sideline.
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