For the second time since Josh Heupel arrived at Tennessee, the Volunteers have inked an elite five-star quarterback. Faizon Brandon, who was the consensus No. 1 overall player for some time in this class, officially became a Volunteer this week after committing way back in August of 2024. Brandon never wavered and helped Tennessee piece together their 2026 class, which ended up finishing seventh in the nation.
The 6-3, 200 pound quarterback advanced to his 7A North Carolina state title game on Thursday night and is set to compete for a championship on December 11th. He’s the top player in the state of North Carolina, checking in as the No. 2 overall player in the country, per 247Sports.
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After that title game, his focus will turn to college football.
“First of all, Faizon’s a great player,” Heupel said of his new quarterback. “We had an opportunity to watch him on the basketball court, extremely explosive, great touch, had great presence. And bodies in motion, you see that on the football tape, obviously as well. He’s played at an elite level for a long time. His body continued to develop. He’s got a great mind. He’s extremely quick-minded. You combine all those factors, really excited about having him in the quarterback room and competing next fall.
“Anytime you’re able to get a quarterback that’s at that level and is made of the right things, he’s able to develop relationships with guys and help attract them. And he certainly did that in this recruiting class, really on both sides of the football.”
Brandon enters a quarterback room with a major lingering question entering the offseason. Joey Aguilar just finished up a solid 2025 campaign as a senior, but could he take the Diego Pavia route and find another season of eligibility? Aguilar recently joined Pavia’s lawsuit against the NCAA regarding JUCO eligibility. His path is almost identical to Pavia’s, which allowed him to get another season of eligibility at Vanderbilt. It’s unclear of a timeline on that situation.
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From there, Tennessee has former 4-star prospects Jake Merklinger and George MacIntyre. We haven’t seen too much from either guy to this point in their career, and it’s hard to imagine Tennessee rolling into 2026 with a quarterback room consisting of Merklinger-MacIntyre-Brandon. That’s a lot of inexperience and question-marks if Aguilar can’t return.
Is Brandon good enough to walk in and compete right off the bat? It’s possible, although that would be a first for Heupel. Nico Iamaleava took a redshirt season, but Tennessee had an obvious answer in front of him that season in Joe Milton. They may or may not have that this year.
“Recruiting process started a long time ago,” Heupel said of Brandon. “Saw the video of him as a young starter, got him on campus, having a camp day with him. His ability to throw the ball with power, with accuracy. His ability to have touch on the football when it’s time to do that. He’s got the athleticism to extend and make plays as a scrambler. He’s a scramble-to-throw guy first, but man, when he does tuck it, he’s got the ability to be a weapon and pick up massive yards with his feet.”
Brandon missed time this year with a thumb injury suffered during the opening game of the season, but has since returned. As a junior, Brandon threw for over 2,800 yards and 35 touchdowns against just two interceptions. He threw for 3,000 yards, 36 touchdowns and three interceptions as a sophomore. Brandon ran for 625 yards as a junior and 528 as a sophomore. He’s scored nine times during both seasons.
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“His ability in the run game to control edges, control pressures a huge part of it,” Heupel continued. “He’s quick-minded. Processes things extremely quickly and then you take into account who he is, his maturity, how he interacts and engages with his teammates. That’s really important in that position that you’re fitting in culturally inside of our locker room and helping us grow into what we need to be. So couldn’t be more excited to have him and his family a part of Rocky Top.”
Remember too — Brandon is doing all of this at the 7A level in North Carolina, which is the second highest division in the state.
Brandon will join Tennessee early and take part in bowl practices with the team later this month. That will allow him to get his feet wet in preparation of spring ball, where we could see the start of an ultra-competitive quarterback battle. Or, if Aguilar wins his case, it could be something entirely different.
