UPDATE: Moments ago, Pete Thamel broke the news that Tennessee will start George MacIntyre against Arkansas. Faizon Brandon is clearly still dealing with his shoulder injury, which Thamel noted in his report. Time to see what G-Mac is made of against the Razorbacks.
Sources: Tennessee will start George MacIntyre against Arkansas this weekend. It’ll be his first career start. Faizon Brandon is dealing with a shoulder injury from the Texas game.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 6, 2026
With the new practice week here, it feels like only a matter of time before Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel shuts down the speculation and announces a new starter. On paper, yes, this is an incredibly difficult choice for Heupel, as he gave 5-star freshman Faizon Brandon the starting job ahead of Week 1 for a reason. But fast forward to present time, is it really that tough?
It really shouldn't be.
The past two weeks for Brandon have been nothing short of eye-opening, but not in a good way. His confidence is close to broken, as he's scared to let the ball rip. Add in the fact that he's still recovering from the shoulder injury suffered against Texas and it's clear that he can't just run the offense right now to the best of his abilities. With that, Heupel really should not think twice and rock with second-year QB George MacIntyre as his starter. There are whispers that he's thinking of going that way too.
George MacIntyre has to be the no-brainer decision for Tennessee against Arkansas
"Yeah, we'll go watch the tape," Heupel said after the win over Auburn on Saturday. "Faizon ultimately didn't play his best football. The turnover on the sideline and some of the things with his progressions... but I've said it a bunch to you guys, we're going to need them all throughout the course of the year. I alluded to that earlier with guys who had to step up, and we'll get back in the building on Monday and continue to grow. There's a lot of growth left for us on the offensive side of the football."
Heupel didn't mince words after the final whistle on Saturday, but early reports this week indicate that Brandon indeed isn't quite 100 percent. While Heupel said that the freshman QB took his benching quite well and he's been supportive of his teammates, it's still clear that G-Mac, for now, gives this team the best chance to win.
When he took over the offense against the Tigers, things just started flowing a bit better. MacIntyre didn't light up the scoreboard or anything, throwing for 86 yards. But still, he was anticipating his throws and taking some shots. The opposite could be said for Brandon, who still looks a bit scared in the pocket. There have been open receivers he's been missing too, which speaks to his mental game being a bit off.
The absolute last thing we need to see this weekend is for Brandon to keep playing hurt or with a lack of confidence. It could keep things going south for him instead of providing a fix. We understand that Tennessee spent big NIL wise to sign him, but if MacIntyre gives the team the best opportunity to beat Arkansas and then keep things rockin' against Alabama on Oct. 17, then you've got to go with whoever is playing better.
This is not an ideal position for Heupel to be in, but it's why he's paid the big bucks. Should he go with MacIntyre, some might see it as a 'problem' because of what Brandon might think, but that doesn't matter right now. What does is going 1-0 this weekend and getting ready for the Tide. MacIntyre has to be the pick. Period.
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