Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel said quarterback Faizon Brandon will be "ready to go" when the Vols play Alabama.

Heupel revealed on SEC Nation that the former five-star freshman will be available for the No. 14-ranked Vols (5-1, 2-1 SEC) against No. 7 Alabama (5-1, 3-1) at Neyland Stadium on Oct. 17 (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC).

Sophomore George MacIntyre will make his second consecutive start.

"Faizon will be ready to go, he got some practice reps," Heupel said on the show. "But this is George's football game."

Brandon entered the season as the starting quarterback. He suffered an apparent shoulder injury in Tennessee's home loss against Texas that eventually led to his benching against Auburn. Brandon was available in "emergency use only" in the Vols' previous win over Arkansas.

He was initially listed as questionable against Alabama but was cleared on the Oct. 16 availability report.

MacIntyre produced mixed results in his first start against Arkansas, completing 18-of-29 passes for 247 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the 24-17 win. He also lost a fumble.

"I like the efficiency that he played with in the second half of the Auburn game," Heupel said about MacIntyre. "He's been decisive. We've got to take care of the football. That's him and the guys around him. Turnovers are going to be critical in this game."

Wynton Jackson covers high school sports for Knox News. Email: wynton.jackson@knoxnews.com

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Josh Heupel says Faizon Brandon is 'ready to go' for Tennessee football vs Alabama

Source: Yahoo Sports