The 2026 Tennessee Volunteers may be the most difficult team in the SEC to get a feel for heading into the season. There are QB questions, sefense questions, new personnel, missing personnel, and new coaches coming off an underwhelming 2025 season. Amid all the change, let’s take a shot at breaking them down.
Is the future now for Faizon Brandon?
Josh Heupel has made it clear that he is in no hurry to settle the Vols’ QB competition. The spring game didn’t do much to add clarity. Faizon Brandon is a 5 star Freshman and the third ranked QB on 247 Sports for 2026. It’s clear that Heupel would have preferred one season of Joey Aguilar to acclimate Brandon and 2025 4 star George MacIntyre to the college game, Aguilar was declared ineligible, and so Brandon now faces off with MacIntyre for the 2026 starting job.
With an experienced offensive line, DeSean Bishop at RB, and Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley on the outside…the offense has a chance to be very productive. While the QB competition will be closely monitored and scrutinized, we’ve learned enough over his career to know that Josh Heupel will have a productive QB…no matter the starter.
Can Jim Knowles get the defense up to speed quickly?
New DC Jim Knowles is one of the best defensive coordinators in college football. His defense, however, is widely considered complex and difficult to master…often requiring a year for players to adjust. One bright spot in spring practice was the emergence of Auburn transfer Kayen Lee at CB. Lee spent the past two seasons with Auburn DC D.J. Durkin, whose style is similar to Knowles’, so it should be no surprise that he is picking up the defense quicker than some.
The pass rush will need some help, with Joshua Josephs heading for the NFL, and Jordan Ross transferring to LSU. Top-ranked transfer portal EDGE Chaz Coleman transferred from Penn State with Knowles, and would be a big plus for this defensive transition IF he is on the field. Coleman missed the spring game and most of spring practice for unknown reasons. Heupel addressed his absence following the spring game:
"Ultimately, Chaz is dealing with some things off the field. He’s got to handle that. We are here to help and support him. "Josh Heupel
Is the schedule a bit tricky?
In conference, the Vols will host Texas, Auburn, Alabama, Kentucky, and LSU, with road games at Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas A&M, and Vandy. The schedule is tough, but not so tough as to preclude the Vols from another playoff appearance. If they get rolling with the new QB, and Knowles brings the defense together quickly, there is potential for 7 or more conference wins.
If you’re looking for a potential sign of trouble for the Vols, look no further than September 12th, when Big Orange travels to Atlanta for a tricky road tilt with Georgia Tech. Should they drop that one…it could get tough in the meat of the conference schedule.
Big year for Heupel?
Josh Heupel is just two years removed from a College Football Playoff appearance, and certainly has earned a level of grace for stabilizing a program that was adrift for the better part of 20 years. With that said I believe many UT fans felt they would continue on an upward trajectory following 2023, not hit a plateau. Heupel’s career arc tells us that he will figure out the QB position, young as it will be this season. The defense may take a little time to adjust to Knowles’ advanced scheme. If the Vols can find themselves in the 8 or 9 win column by year’s end, there’s no reason to think that they can’t climb over the next two seasons with a young, upwardly mobile QB.
Add us as a preferred source on Google