Welp, here we go again.
In Week 6, Tennessee and Josh Heupel decided to rock with George MacIntyre as QB1 with Faizon Brandon still recovering from his shoulder injury. While G-Mac helped power the Vols to a win on the road against Arkansas, Brandon apparently is feeling better, ready to once again push for the starting job with Alabama next up on the schedule.
According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, Brandon is now seeing more and more work in practice running with the ones. Because of this, what Heupel said about practice this week determining his starter against the Crimson Tide is making even more sense. At the same time, it also shows just how difficult this call is (once again) going to be for him.
Keep in mind that Brandon and MacIntyre went head-to-head during spring ball and fall camp, with it being incredibly tight. This is the case with Week 7 here, and while MacIntyre might give the Vols the best chance to win, Heupel cannot risk upsetting his five-star freshman, right?
Also from College Football Live, there’s been an uptick in practice reps for Faizon Brandon this week. He’s been dealing with a shoulder injury. No clarity yet on a starter against Alabama for the Vols. pic.twitter.com/STAdtQPLrf
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 13, 2026
Faizon Brandon getting more practice reps adds to the Tennessee QB intrigue to face Alabama
"There's some ambiguity here going forward this week." Thamel said on ESPN. "George MacIntyre had his first career start at Arkansas last week. Obviously had his ups and downs. I've been told by sources that Faizon Brandon has experienced an uptick in practice reps this week. No decision is imminent on who will start in this game, but Faizon Brandon's availability coming off that shoulder injury against Texas appears to give him a better shot at getting some snaps in this game."
This really feels like this see-saw battle is being left more open-ended than ever. MacIntyre is the one who is healthier, and him letting the ball rip against Arkansas was fun to see. This is not a cut and dry call, though, as the Vols clearly want Brandon to be the guy moving forward. The massive NIL investment speaks to that.
Brandon signed as the headliner for Tennessee's 2026 class, ranked five stars and the No. 3 quarterback in the country. In his first three games, he looked pretty dang strong, of course including his five total touchdowns in his college debut against Furman.
Against Texas and Auburn, however, his play went south pretty dang fast. His confidence is a bit shaken, but Heupel does not want those two games to define his first season in Knoxville. Because of that, Heupel is going to keep this as an open competition, letting whoever practices best to be the one to lead the offense out onto the field against Alabama.
Will that be Brandon or MacIntyre? No one knows at this point, and Brandon getting in more reps this week adds to the drama of it all. Alabama does not have this issue with Keelon Russell living up to the hype.
If the offense can look sharp for Tennessee against the Crimson Tide, then this battle could come down to the wire on Saturday. Right now, your guess is as good as ours on who will start for Heupel, but do not expect an announcement anytime soon. This could drag out until Friday or Saturday.
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