In the blink of an eye, Tennessee has gone from rocking with Faizon Brandon leading the way for the 2026 season to facing a major quarterback question ahead of the Arkansas game. That's not a good problem for head coach Josh Heupel, but countless eyes are now turning to second-year signal-caller George MacIntyre.
Over the summer, MacIntyre had his dreams crushed when Brandon was named QB1, but all that has changed. Brandon (3-of-8 for no yards) looked timid against Auburn, leading to MacIntyre taking over to help power the Vols to a thrilling 24-14 win.
This week, a battle of sorts will once again take place during practice, with Brandon and MacIntyre vying for the job. From our chair, G-Mac should get the start, as he gives UT the best position to win and keep winning - that's no knock on Brandon, but the true freshman has shown us he's not quite ready for SEC play. The same can't be said for MacIntyre, who has an extra year of experience under his belt. And with that, MacIntyre could win the job and then potentially never lose it again.
George MacIntyre, right now, gives Tennessee the best chance to win
While no one wants to shut the door on Brandon still having a memorable career with the Vols, the cards could be stacked against him if MacIntyre grabs the QB1 spot and plays well. Let's take a look at the next two weeks in particular.
Imagine if Tennessee thwarts Arkansas in Week 6 and then pulls off an epic upset of Alabama in Week 7 with MacIntyre running the offense. If that comes to fruition, then he'd no doubt be the starter for the rest of the season and hopefully get the Vols back to the College Football Playoff. That'd be great to see for MacIntyre, who is still only in his second season with the program.
George MacIntyre celebrates with his family after leading the #Vols to a 24-14 win over Auburn pic.twitter.com/5204U2YJnn
— Sam Rothman (@samrothman_) October 3, 2026
Sometimes it's easy to forget that he was a 2025 signee who was ranked four stars and the No. 13 quarterback in the country per the 247Sports Composite. Yes, Brandon was a five-star and the No. 3 QB for the 2026 class, but those rankings get thrown out the window once you make the move to a college campus.
If MacIntyre is playing better and leading this team to wins, Heupel is going to have to stick with the hot hand - and MacIntyre could, in theory, be the starter for the rest of the year, and then in 2027, 2028, and 2029. All of that could be forgotten if Brandon ends up winning the job back, but it very much feels like signs could be pointing to MacIntyre getting the nod vs. the Hogs.
This isn't us throwing shade at Brandon in any way. He's a young man with a ton of potential, which we saw during the first three wins of the campaign. Despite that, he wasn't the same in the loss vs. Texas, and things only got worse for him against Auburn. Had Heupel not benched him for MacIntyre, who knows if the Vols would have won that game.
Heupel made the tough call to put his team in the best position to win, which they did. Heupel surely has that in the back of his mind for the Arkansas game and beyond. That could prove to be good news for MacIntyre, but rough overall for Brandon, and not just for the coming weeks, too.
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