At some point later this month, sometime after Tennessee’s second fall scrimmage (which is scheduled for August 22), Vols head coach Josh Heupel will name a starting quarterback for the season-opener against Furman.

Naming the starter for the Furman game is the easy part. The hard part is what comes next.

Either redshirt freshman George MacIntyre or true freshman Faizon Brandon will emerge as the best option in fall camp. But Heupel won’t truly know who the best option is for the longterm future until seeing how his quarterbacks perform on Saturdays this fall.

It’s possible that whoever wins the job excels from the get-go and there’s never a doubt that he’s “the guy.”

The far more likely scenario, however, is that whoever wins the Vols’ quarterback competition will experience some growing pains. After all, neither MacIntyre nor Brandon has much experience. Both players are still very much developing as SEC passers. There will be some tough moments.

Josh Heupel will have an even tougher decision to make once the season starts

Once the season begins, the question for Heupel becomes how long of a leash does he give his starting quarterback?

Let’s say Brandon wins the job, looks great against Furman, and plays just OK in the second game on the road against Georgia Tech. Maybe he throws a bad interception against Georgia Tech in a crucial moment that costs the Vols. If that happens, there will undoubtedly be some fans calling for MacIntyre.

What does Heupel do in that scenario?

Does he stick with Brandon and trust that the young quarterback (Brandon just turned 18 in June) is going to learn from the mistake? Or does he give Brandon a short leash and turn to MacIntyre immediately?

We know that the winner of the battle in fall camp isn’t always the best option — we all know the Hendon Hooker and Joe Milton story from 2021. But just because that was the scenario that unfolded in 2021 doesn’t mean it’s how it will unfold in 2026.

Heupel is in a tough spot because he has two quarterbacks who are complete unknowns when it comes to playing on Saturdays in the SEC. Bouncing back and forth between two quarterbacks can be dangerous because you risk killing the confidence of both players (sometimes the best thing for a player is to go back on the field after a bad mistake). But Heupel also has to figure out which player is the best option not just for this season, but for the next two seasons.

Unfortunately, there is no right answer. Heupel is going to have to trust his gut and his coaching instincts. And that means he’s going to have to trust what he sees from each player on the sideline and what he believes is needed in the moment. That may mean sticking with one guy when fans are calling for the other guy.

I don’t envy the spot Heupel is going to be in, but hey, that’s why he gets paid $9 million a year.