The Tennessee Vols didn’t ask true freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon to do too much early in his debut against Furman on Saturday.

Tennessee went with a vanilla approach in the first half, opting for running plays and short-to-intermediate throws.

“Maybe it’s a little surprising we didn’t see a few more balls down the field in the first half,” said Furman head coach Clay Hendrix after the game. “But I think they were trying to put him probably in a position where he could be successful.”

“I think they just kind of took what they [were given],” added Hendrix. “They had a bunch of high percentage throws. … I think they had a good plan for him [with it being Brandon’s] first time playing.”

It was a smart plan for Brandon’s first career college start, but former Tennessee quarterback Jonathan Crompton is hoping to see a different approach in Week 2 against Georgia Tech.

Jonathan Crompton wants to see the Vols take an early gamble with Faizon Brandon against Georgia Tech

Crompton, who, like Brandon, is also a North Carolina native, said on the AtoZ Sports Vols post-game live show after Tennessee’s win over Furman that he wants to see the true freshman take a deep shot early against Georgia Tech.

And it’s not just because Crompton wants to put up points early against Georgia Tech, it’s because he wants to see how Brandon responds if the play doesn’t work out.

“If I win the toss, I’m taking the ball in this game,” said Crompton. “And I want to get a first down real fast. As soon as I get a first down, or depending on where the return may be if I get into a positive down and distance, I’m taking a shot right out of the gate.

“Yes, we want it to work. But I want to see how [Brandon is] going to respond on the road as a young quarterback if it doesn’t work. Obviously, we’re calling the play for it to work. But if it were to go south, how do you respond? That’s going to tell me how the rest of this game, and the season, can go under [Brandon] as the signal caller. That’s how I look at it. I want to get into an advantageous down distance where the whole playbook is open — second-and-two or third-and-three, where we know we can go for it on fourth down. I want that situation very early, preferably on the first drive, and I want to take a shot.”

I like that idea from Crompton. If you hit the deep shot, then it immediately puts pressure on Georgia Tech and it quiets the crowd a bit.

But like he said, if you don’t hit the deep shot, then you get to see how the true freshman responds in a tough situation on the road.

And look, regardless of how good Brandon turns out to be, he’s going to run into some adversity. There wasn’t any adversity against Furman — the outcome of that game was never in doubt — but there will eventually be a tough moment for him.

Sometimes, it’s best to get that tough moment out of the way early.

Brandon’s high school coach said recently that the Greensboro, NC native threw a pick six on the first play of his high school career and responded by running for a long touchdown. That story makes me think Brandon would handle a tough moment on the road against Georgia Tech just fine.

But playing on the road at night in a hostile Power 4 stadium is a lot different than throwing a pick six as a freshman in a high school game. No one really knows how Brandon will respond until he’s actually in that situation.

Going with Crompton’s “gamble” is a win-win. Tennessee either hits the deep play, or they get to see how Brandon responds in a tough environment when a big play doesn’t go his way while getting that early moment of adversity out of the way for the young quarterback.