Tennessee benches Brandon for MacIntyre against Auburn

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 03: Faizon Brandon #11 of the Tennessee Volunteers drops back to pass the ball during the first half of the game against the Auburn Tigers at Neyland Stadium on October 03, 2026 in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Johnnie Izquierdo / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Tennessee benched Faizon Brandon in the second quarter of Saturday's 24-14 win against Auburn after the freshman quarterback completed just 3 of 8 passes for no yards and one interception.

Brandon was replaced by George MacIntyre after his interception, with just over five minutes remaining in the first half. Brandon also had four rushing attempts for a 9-yard loss.

"Faizon just wasn't operating. He wasn't feeling 100%," Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel said at halftime, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel's Adam Sparks.

MacIntyre completed 5 of 5 passes for 38 yards before the second quarter ended, though Tennessee trailed 7-3. The sophomore signal-caller finished the game with 86 passing yards.

Running back DeSean Bishop led the Volunteers' offense, rushing for 216 yards and three touchdowns.

Brandon has struggled recently, leading Tennessee to a 3-0 record before losing 20-17 to Texas last week. His five yards per attempt against the Longhorns was his lowest mark this season.

XRedditFacebookWhatsAppEmailSMS

More Stories