Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel did not announce his starting quarterback for the Alabama game as he continues to walk a rhetorical tight rope in how he depicts the competition between George MacIntyre and Faizon Brandon.
No one can fault Heupel for not naming a starter as No. 14 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1 SEC) prepares to play No. 7 Alabama (5-1, 3-1) on Oct. 17 (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC) at Neyland Stadium.
It’s a rivalry game.
MacIntyre and Brandon have different skillsets, so showing his hand could help Alabama narrow its game plan. And neither quarterback has played well enough to lock down the starting job permanently – although MacIntyre was solid in a 24-17 win over Arkansas on Oct. 10.
“We'll find out here through the week," Heupel said on Oct.
12 at his weekly press conference when asked to name his starting quarterback. “We get on the grass tomorrow (Tuesday), and we'll work towards Saturday.”
Heupel praised MacIntyre but said little about Brandon, who was ineffective and injured in two SEC games. Brandon, a five-star freshman, was only at the Arkansas game for “emergency use only” due to a right shoulder injury, according to Heupel.
When asked how Brandon's limited practice time could impact his playing availability, Heupel kept his answer brief.
“(Practice) helps everybody," Heupel said. "The more reps you get the better prepared you are, having gone through the looks and made those throws."
Why George MacIntyre could start against Alabama
MacIntyre, a sophomore and former Brentwood Academy standout, made his first start against Arkansas after replacing Brandon midway through the Auburn game on Oct. 3.
MacIntyre appears to be the logical choice to start the Alabama game, especially if Brandon is still sidelined by the injury. The passing game expanded with MacIntyre. He was 18-of-29 passing for 247 yards, the most by a UT quarterback this season, plus one TD.
“I thought (MacIntyre) was decisive with the football. He was going to the right spot and made some plays,” Heupel said. “(He) did some things inside of the pocket that were really positive. (On) the third down (play), he makes a guy miss (and) keeps his eyes down the football field."
But MacIntyre also committed three turnovers, including two interceptions and a fumble. He can’t make those mistakes against Alabama and expect to win.
“Collectively, as a group, we’ve got to do a better job taking care of the football,” Heupel said. “We’ve got to play smarter and not make it more difficult on ourselves (with) pre-snap penalties or whatever it might be. So (there’s) a lot to clean up. But (MacIntyre) did a good job.”
Is Faizon Brandon an injured starter or MacIntyre's backup?
Brandon started the first five games of the season. He was benched after struggling to process the offense in the passing game, being sacked 15 times and showing effects of his injury.
Before that, Brandon played well against inferior competition in nonconference games. He completed 61 of 101 passes for 697 yards, seven TDs and one interception. And he rushed for 130 yards and three TDs.
It’s debatable how much Brandon’s injury impacted his poor play against Texas and Auburn. Heupel hasn’t parsed those points, but he's excited about Brandon's talent and potential.
Brandon only threw a few lobbed passes during warm-ups before the Arkansas game. And Heupel said that Brandon didn’t practice much due to the injury, leaving MacIntyre as the obvious option to start that game.
The question now is whether Brandon is an injured starter or MacIntyre’s backup.
That ambiguity surrounding the quarterback situation buys Heupel time to assess both quarterbacks. And the longer that Brandon’s injury is the primary reason given for his absence from the lineup, the more time that Heupel has to evaluate both quarterbacks.
Of course, there’d be no better factor in a quarterback competition than playing well in a win over Alabama. At least one of these quarterbacks will get that opportunity.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Josh Heupel is vague about Tennessee QBs Faizon Brandon, George MacIntyre vs Alabama
