A former Alabama QB made a wild statement comparing Faizon Brandon and Arch Manning that has Tennessee fans feeling some kind of way
Former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron had some interesting thoughts this week on Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Tennessee quarterback Faizon Brandon.
Former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron had some interesting thoughts this week on Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Tennessee quarterback Faizon Brandon.
McCarron, despite the Longhorns’ win over Ohio State on Saturday night in Austin, wasn’t impressed by Manning.
The former Alabama quarterback didn’t think Manning looked good going through his progressions before suggesting that Brandon looked better.
“I thought Arch looked horrible, to be honest with you,” said McCarron. “And I love the Manning family. I thought Arch did not look good. If his first read was not open, he looked lost. He hangs on that first progression so long. He stares down his receivers way too much.
“Look at his last couple of possessions. Just take the fourth quarter. Any big throw, it’s to his first progression. He never came off his first progression and hit another big throw. I’m not hating against Arch at all. Like I said, I love the Manning family. I’ve known them since I was younger. I think Arch has a chance to be good, but I think he’s got a lot of growing to do from a pocket awareness standpoint, from a progression standpoint and playing faster. I watched that young kid, the freshman from Tennessee tonight, and I thought him going through progressions looked better than how Arch looks. And Arch has had a whole year of playing experience over him.”
“I thought the kid played well,” added McCarron of Brandon. “And listen, Georgia Tech’s not the loudest place to play at, but it was packed. They were into it. Brent Key’s done an unbelievable job. I hate it for him that they’re 0-2. But I think this kid’s going to be good. … He has a chance to be the best Tennessee quarterback in a long time. He goes through the progressions well, he’s calm in the pocket. The one thing I kind of recognized tonight is he’s got to get better deep-ball accuracy. He slings it, and that could probably come down to mechanics.”
That’s pretty high praise for Brandon. But it would be wise for Brandon to completely ignore it and continue just doing what he’s doing. The North Carolina native is just 18 years old, he’s going to face some adversity — it’s inevitable. The last thing he needs is “rat poison” from the media.
Vols fans, though, certainly have to be excited about what they’ve seen so far from Brandon. He’s made of the right stuff, and he has the skills to be a really special player in orange and white.
