Tennessee is about to do something unusual for the program: open a season with a true freshman at quarterback. Faizon Brandon won the job after battling sophomore George MacIntyre through the offseason and preseason, and the Vols are heading into 2026 with a first-time starter under center.
That may feel like a leap for Tennessee, but it’s familiar territory for Josh Heupel. The head coach has built a reputation for getting production from quarterbacks at all different stages, and his track record with young passers points toward optimism for Brandon and the Vols.
Heupel made it clear at SEC Media Days in July that he was comfortable taking that route, even if it runs against the grain of where college football has been headed. In the first two seasons of the 12-team College Football Playoff, older quarterbacks with real mileage have dominated the sport’s biggest stage. Seven of the past 10 national champions, along with each of the past four, entered the season with a starter who already had at least 13 career starts and more than 900 career snaps.
Still, Tennessee is betting on its own evaluation. The program invested heavily in Brandon and MacIntyre during the 2025 and 2026 recruiting cycles, and Heupel believes either one could operate an offense that returns eight starters.
The bigger reason for confidence, though, is his history. Heupel has repeatedly shown he can put young quarterbacks in position to succeed and keep the offense moving.
Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Joey Halzle laid out the approach before preseason camp, describing a system built around the player rather than forcing the player to fit the system.
"I think a lot of it is we've been willing to not try to shove a square peg into a round hole,” Halzle said. “We've been able to look at guys and say, ‘What does he do best?’
and put him in position to be extremely successful. It’s not about what we want to do.
It’s about what he can do at a high level.
“Obviously, there’s certain things that they have to be able to do well. It starts in the recruiting process.
It starts in the developmental process from a young age, and not waiting ‘til a guy is a starter to really start developing him. It’s developing him right when he walks through the door.
It’s having a plan from Day 1 to get him ready to go.
“So I think with all that, and then saying, ‘OK, now, this is our guy. What does he do best?
What does he struggle with? How do we tailor practice to fit him?
How do we tailor our game plan to fit him? Where do we put the best pieces on offense around him so he can be the most successful?’
And you put that all together, and I think that’s why you’re seeing the success at that position like you have.”
That philosophy has been a hallmark of Heupel’s career, and it’s why Tennessee feels comfortable handing the offense to Brandon. The Vols are young at the most important spot on the field, but in Heupel’s world, that doesn’t have to mean they’re unprepared.
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Arkansas Just Gave Tennessee One More Reason To Watch Fayetteville
Arkansas has settled on its quarterback for the opener, and that gives Tennessee fans one more name to keep in mind when the Volunteers start sorting through the early SEC schedule. Junior KJ Jackson will get the first crack at the job against North Alabama, a notable development for a Razorbacks team that is turning the offense over to a player with game experience but no full-time starting resume.
Jackson beat out sophomore transfer AJ Hill, who arrived from Memphis, and he steps in to replace Taylen Green as Arkansas starter. For Tennessee, it is another early look at how the Razorbacks plan to reshape themselves under center, and how quickly that choice could matter once the games start to count in the conference race. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessees Quarterback Call Just Created A Massive 2026 Debate
Tennessees quarterback picture for 2026 came into focus with the kind of decision that always lingers well beyond spring and summer chatter. After a competition with George MacIntyre, the Volunteers have settled on Faizon Brandon as the starter, a move that says as much about the programs long-term direction as it does about the immediate depth chart.
Brandons selection answers one big question, but it also sets up another one for the Volunteers as the season approaches. MacIntyre remains part of the conversation, and whenever a quarterback battle ends this early in a program with Tennessees expectations, the next debate usually starts almost immediately over how much of a margin exists between the winner and the quarterback still waiting behind him. [Read more 🡒]
Heupel Keeps Tennessees Arion Carter Frustration Front And Center
Tennessee linebacker Arion Carters two-game NCAA suspension has become more than a roster note for Josh Heupel. Carter was sidelined because of a $427 flight paid for during the pre-NFL draft process, a cost he later repaid after choosing to return to college, and the Vols coach has been openly critical of how the situation was handled. It is the kind of eligibility ruling that can linger around a program, especially when it affects a player expected to matter early in the season.
Heupels frustration also sits against a larger backdrop that has made these cases harder to ignore. Other players, including Cleveland Browns rookie DaeQuan Wright, have gone back to college football after receiving much larger NFL bonuses, even as legal challenges continue over NCAA eligibility rules. For Tennessee, Carters case is a reminder that the line between amateurism and the modern player marketplace still feels inconsistent, and it is exactly the sort of inconsistency Heupel has kept front and center. [Read more 🡒]