Have you caught your breath yet, Tennessee fans? While it wasn't perfect, which no one expected, Tennessee cruised to a 56-9 win over FCS Furman, with players on both sides of the ball putting on a show. Faizon Brandon made some history, and he's getting a ton of love right now from people across the country.
Josh Heupel was left favorably impressed with how his true freshman QB looked. That said, he wasn't the only one to impress, while one receiver in particular didn't turn heads the way we hoped he would. With that, we've got our winners and losers for you below:
Faizon Brandon (winner) looked exactly how a 5-star freshman should
Take a bow, Mr. Brandon. The true freshman finished the day with five total touchdowns, throwing for 226 yards and three TDs, while adding 68 more yards and two scores on the ground. Brandon was the No. 3 QB for the 2026 class, and we all now know why.
His extra humility after the victory, too, only made things sweeter. Brandon will have a much more difficult task next week against Georgia Tech, but he sure has people thinking he can help this team start off 2-0.
"I'm really just proud of me and my team's success," Brandon said after the win. "We worked so hard in the offseason, and just coming out here and seeing it pay off - that's just the main thing I'm proud of right now."
George MacIntyre (winner) is one heck of a backup QB for the Vols
It's not often we're going to give backups some appreciation, but George MacIntyre deserves it here. The way he handled losing the QB1 battle with Brandon has been admirable. Against Furman, he took the field in the second half, throwing the ball with plenty of zip. He went 5-of-7 for 56 yards, plus a touchdown toss to Tristen Keys. G-Mac was thrilled after that TD, and you know what, good for him. He deserved that moment.
Braylon Staley (loser) didn't have the season-opener we expected him to
Let us start by saying Braylon Staley is a stud receiver, and this wasn't a game AT ALL that Tennessee needed him to be on fire for. Still, he finished the game with two receptions for eight yards, while Mike Matthews looked like the true WR1 for this team with four receptions for 132 yards and two TDs.
Come Week 2 vs. Georgia Tech, however, everyone should get ready for Staley to look like his old self and be a real difference-maker for Heupel and his offense. One quiet game is nothing to worry about, especially in a blowout victory like this.
Xavier Gilliam (winner) was downright electric in his Vols debut
The player of the game on defense was no question Xavier Gilliam, a Penn State transfer who made quite an impact on the defensive line. On the day, Gilliam recorded three sacks, which no one would have guessed leading up to kickoff.
Last season, he had 0.5 sacks to his name with Penn State, but he followed Jim Knowles to Knoxville, and that decision has already paid off in a big way. This was the textbook definition of a breakout game for Gilliam. Let's see what else he has in store for us, especially against the Yellow Jackets.
Jordan Rodgers (loser) owes Tennessee a huge apology
ESPN's Jordan Rodgers made countless headlines when he put Tennessee on 'upset alert' against Furman in Week 1. Dude, be serious. Rodgers brought up concerns about Brandon making his debut as a true freshman, while also noting that Jim Knowles was bringing a new defense to UT.
When a 47-point win by the Vols is posted, it's made more than clear that Rodgers could not have been more wrong with his original assessment. Show some respect next time, good sir! Tennessee sure made him eat his words, but hopefully Rodgers will be a good sport about things next time he discusses Tennessee on air.
Mike Matthews (winner) showed out for Tennessee in a big way
We mentioned it previously, but Matthews and Brandon had Neyland Stadium rocking on their two TD connections. The first one was a 55-yarder at the start of the third quarter, while the second one came a little over two minutes later, good for a 57-yard score.
no one in between.
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) September 5, 2026
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Both of these Brandon throws to Matthews were on the money, with the latter making the catches look easy. For the rest of the campaign, Staley and Matthews will be a sweet 1-2 punch for Brandon to work with, and thanks to his showing vs. Furman, Matthews is only adding to the excitement for that duo.
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