Tennessee Vols are the team that's standing out the most for 2026 4-star QB
The Tennessee Vols appear to be the team to beat for a 2026 four-star quarterback that's ranked among the top players in the nation. Four-star quarterback Faizon Brandon is receiving plenty of attention from some top college football programs. Alabama, Florida State, LSU, Penn State, Oklahoma, and USC are all in the mix for Brandon. […]
The Tennessee Vols appear to be the team to beat for a 2026 four-star quarterback that's ranked among the top players in the nation.
Four-star quarterback Faizon Brandon is receiving plenty of attention from some top college football programs. Alabama, Florida State, LSU, Penn State, Oklahoma, and USC are all in the mix for Brandon.
It's Tennessee, though, that's standing out the most so far for Brandon.
“I would say definitely Tennessee has been showing a lot of love and everything,” said Brandon to Rivals.com this week. “They've been doing really well. It's the communication that they have with me and how they've built a really good relationship with me and it's pretty easy to talk to them about everything. I say that's a big part.”
Brandon, 6-foot-4/175 lbs from Greensboro, NC, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 6 quarterback in the nation and the No. 6 player in the state of North Carolina.
The talented quarterback, who is hoping to commit later this year after his junior season is complete, is from the same city as former Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker. And the two are already familiar with each other.
“(Hooker) said keep working, never stop working," said Brandon to 247Sports last summer. "And he’s said a lot of good things to the (Tennessee) coaches about me. … His dad has told me that they treat him well (at Tennessee), and he said the move from Virginia Tech to there really felt like home, like, a much better home there.”
There's still a long way to go in this recruiting battle — Brandon won't sign with a college program until later in 2025 — but for now, it sounds like the Vols are in a really good spot.
If Tennessee can land Brandon, it would give the Vols an elite quarterback prospect for a fourth straight recruiting class (Nico Iamaleava in 2023, Jake Merklinger in 2024, and George MacIntyre in 2025).
