Grading QB Faizon Brandon in Tennessee win over Auburn where he was benched

Tennessee football freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon was replaced by backup George MacIntyre in the second quarter after a lackluster start against Auburn on Oct. 3.

The 17th-ranked Vols (4-1, 1-1 SEC) trailed 7-3 with 3:42 remaining in the second quarter when they made the switch. Tennessee won 24-14 over Auburn (3-2, 1-2) at Neyland Stadium.

"Faizon just wasn't operating. He wasn't feeling 100%," UT coach Josh Heupel told ESPN at halftime after pulling Brandon.

Brandon, a former five-star recruit, beat out MacIntyre in a preseason competition for the starting job. He started the first four games, but the offense was dreadful against Auburn.

Tennessee plays Arkansas on Oct. 10 (4:15 p.m. ET, SEC Network) in the first SEC road game of Brandon’s debut season. Here’s a quick rundown of his abbreviated performance against Auburn.

Faizon Brandon stats

Brandon was 3-of-8 passing for zero yards, no TDs and one interception against Auburn. He had four rushing attempts for minus-9 yards, including two sacks.

Through five games in the 2026 season, Brandon has passed for 697 yards, seven TDs and one interception. And he’s rushed for 130 yards and three TDs.

Faizon Brandon’s best: Only forward pass

Brandon completed three passes, but only one went for positive yards. That was on the first offensive play of the game, a 7-yard completion to tight end Trent Thomas.

Fittingly, Thomas lost a fumble on the play. But the officials ruled that his forward progress had been stopped before the fumble.

Faizon Brandon’s worst: First interception

Brandon didn’t throw an interception in his first four games, but that changed in the worse way in the second quarter. He was picked off by linebacker Xavier Atkins on a rollout pass. It appeared that Brandon never saw the defender dropping into coverage.

The interception gave Auburn prime field position that it couldn’t earn with its offense. The Tigers scored a touchdown four plays later to go ahead 7-3. Brandon was replaced by MacIntyre on UT’s next offensive snap.

Grade: F

Brandon obviously wasn’t comfortable after coming off the 20-17 loss to No. 1 Texas, when he was sacked 10 times. Whether he was physically limited or just confused against the Auburn defense, he was completely ineffective.

Brandon lost more than yards than he gained. He passed for no yards. He was indecisive when looking for receivers from the pocket. And he lost 9 yards as a runner and scrambler.

Granted, the offensive line didn’t help Brandon much. He was sacked on back-to-back plays. And he was hit by an unblocked pass rusher while attempting a lateral, which yielded a 12-yard loss.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing atknoxnews.com/subscribe.

Get the latest news and insight on SEC football by subscribing to the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Grading QB Faizon Brandon in Tennessee win over Auburn where he was benched