Tennessee Vols QB commit already defeats the Florida Gators in unique way a year before he's set to join Josh Heupel in Knoxville
Tennessee Vols fans may still feel a bit jaded by the whole Nico Iamaleava saga at quarterback, but that mess shouldn't deter anyone from getting excited about the next five star quarterback headed to Knoxville here soon.Josh Heupel's next elite quarterback recruit–five star QB Faizon Brandon–is competing this week against 19 other top passers at […]
Tennessee Vols fans may still feel a bit jaded by the whole Nico Iamaleava saga at quarterback, but that mess shouldn't deter anyone from getting excited about the next five star quarterback headed to Knoxville here soon.
Josh Heupel's next elite quarterback recruit–five star QB Faizon Brandon–is competing this week against 19 other top passers at the Elite 11 Finals in California, and he's already defeated the Florida Gators is a unique way before even stepping on Tennessee's campus.
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Faizon Brandon takes down competition on Day 1 of Elite 11
For those unfamiliar, the Elite 11 Finals competition annually includes the best quarterback recruits from around the nation, inevitably crowning an MVP of the week. Former Elite 11 MVPs include talents like Clemson's Cade Klubnik, Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Justin Fields, Tua Tagovailoa and more.
Throughout day one of the competition Faizon Brandon struggled a bit early on according to most recruiting analysts who were on site, but once he got warmed up completely destroyed the competition. In fact, he got so hot down the stretch on day one that he won the Stack Athlete Railshot Challenge, taking down Florida's top QB commit Will Griffin in the process.
Andrew Ivins of 247Sports had this to say on Brandon's performance in the Railshot Challenge:
"After the first 30 minutes I was a bit concerned about Faizon Brandon. That's because I don't think I got off to the best of starts…He was off his mark early. With that being said, he rebounds at the tail end of the workout. [Brandon] ends up winning the Stack Athlete Railshot Challenge. He and Florida [quarterback] commit Will Griffin go head to head. They went to three different rounds–the final two [quarterbacks of the 20 there]. He wins that event. There's a lot to like about Faizon Brandon."
If you would like to see most every throw from his final round of the competition you can find that in Billy Tucker's post below. Vols fans should love to see Brandon already taking down their SEC rival Florida Gators, even if it is in just one event at the Elite 11 Finals. Griffin reportedly looked good as well, but Brandon's accuracy and drive won him the day.
Brandon's performance apparently wasn't just limited to that one drill either. Yes, like many observed, he did start a bit slow as he was getting used to the wide receivers he was throwing to, but once he got loose, it was game over for every other quarterback.
Hudson Standish, a national scouting analyst with 247Sports, had this to say on Brandon's first day:
"Once he got to the red zone circuit of drills he fired in a couple of dig routes at the back of the end zone. I think he could kind of tell, 'Okay, I'm heating up.' And then from there as soon as he got loose, I think it was just ideal stuff from [Faizon Brandon], culminating with that Stack Athlete Railshot Challenge. He had a few throws towards the end of that 1-versus-1 with [Florida commit] Will Griffin where it was right on the face mask, perfect timing, splitting the cover-two safety and corner. It was great stuff."
If you'd like to get a more detailed breakdown on Faizon Brandon's time at the Elite 11 and more of the quarterbacks on site you can find the full show (where these quotes came from) in Andrew Ivins' post below.
Vols fans can still get excited about Joey Aguilar (transfer in from UCLA this spring), plus their two young gun passers in George MacIntyre and Jake Merklinger, but Faizon Brandon looks like he may be built different. He's already proving to the world this week that he's got the goods to take the Vols back to special places here soon. Let's hope Brandon continues showing off and improving as he prepares to join Josh Heupel and the Vols next year.
We'll be back with more Tennessee Vols coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
If you want to see why Faizon Brandon is now considered the top overall recruit in the entire nation just check out some of his highlights in the video below!
