Come on, Josh Heupel!
After Tennessee took care of business against then-No. 6 Alabama at Neyland Stadium, you had to figure that second-year quarterback George MacIntyre was 100 percent going to enter the week as the team's starter, right? Well, not so fast.
Heupel is not here to let the quarterback drama die down at all publicly, as he once again refused to name a starter during his press conference to start the week.
With a trip to Columbia up next to take on South Carolina on Oct. 24, Heupel is going to keep everyone guessing on whether or not G-Mac will get his third straight start, or if five-star freshman Faizon Brandon will be back in action against the Gamecocks.
Josh Heupel declines to name a starting quarterback for Saturday's game at South Carolina.
— Ben McKee (@benmckee14) October 19, 2026
Josh Heupel still won't name a starting QB with Tennessee facing South Carolina in Week 8
“George has played smart and efficient. I like a lot of what he’s done. You guys will figure it out when we get to the game," Heupel said while meeting with the media about MacIntyre.
Per Heupel, everyone will have to wait until Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET to see who Tennessee's starting quarterback is going to be. Shane Beamer is probably seeing this update and shaking his head a bit, but hey, Heupel must know what he is doing.
At the same time, there is simply no way he can take the ball out of MacIntyre's hands following that thrilling upset win against the Crimson Tide. MacIntyre finished the victory completing 21-of-31 pass attempts for 197 yards and one interception, but that INT was not on him. It was a catchable ball that bounced off his WR's hands.
MacIntyre did more than enough managing the offense, making some key passes when needed, while also allowing for running back DeSean Bishop to take over and do his thing. The more MacIntyre plays, the more of a rhythm he seems to be getting into. Preventing him from growing just to appease a high-profile freshman in Brandon would be the wrong move here. Even Heupel should know that.
Brandon is back to full health after suffering his shoulder injury against Texas, but it is hard to get over what we saw against both the Longhorns and Auburn. He was off both physically and mentally. While he might be feeling better now, G-Mac is the one with the hot hand. He has helped the Vols climb up to No. 11 in the AP Top 25 thanks to three straight wins after the heartbreak against Arch Manning and Co.
A struggling South Carolina team will have an upset in mind, and the Tennessee loss to SC in 2022 is something that Heupel reminded his team about already. This is a 'trap game' for the Vols, but one they have to take incredibly seriously.
With that, Heupel may keep his QB plans out of the public eye for now, but once again the decision is right in front of him. Let MacIntyre keep his stretch of starts going and don't even think twice about it.
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