Tennessee freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon wasn’t listed on the initial SEC availability report on Sept. 30 for the Auburn game after suffering an apparent right shoulder injury against Texas.
That’s good news for Tennessee. It means that Brandon is expected to play when the 17th-ranked Vols (3-1, 0-1 SEC) host Auburn (3-1, 1-1) on Oct. 3 (3:30 p.m. ET) at Neyland Stadium.
Does it guarantee that Brandon is fully recovered from the pounding that he took in the Texas game? Not necessarily.It also doesn’t preclude backup George MacIntyre from playing.
Brandon was sacked 10 times in a 20-17 loss to No. 1 Texas on Sept. 26, and he took additional vicious hits on passes and rushing attempts. He was knocked out of the game for part of the second quarter
with an injury to his shoulder area on his throwing arm.
When Brandon returned, some of his passes short-hopped to receivers. And he was unavailable to attend the postgame press conference because he was receiving medical treatment, a UT spokesperson said.
That raised questions of whether his shoulder had a lingering issue.
After the game, coach Josh Heupel said Brandon was healthy enough to return from his second-quarter injury. But he indicated that the medical treatment was due to hits he took after going back into the game.
“He was (healthy). Otherwise, we wouldn’t have put him back in,” Heupel said. “The medical staff went and checked him. He was able to come back and felt healthy, ready to play. Down the stretch he took some shots too.”
Why Faizon Brandon is not on SEC injury report
The initial SEC availability report was released on Sept. 30. It will be updated daily with the final report released 90 minutes prior to the game.
Per SEC policy, schools must accurately designate players’ participation status. If the school has knowledge that a player may not be able to participate in the upcoming game for any reason (injury, illness, suspension, ineligibility or personal matter), it must report it.
That means if UT thinks there is any possibility that Brandon could miss the game, it must report it. Players are designated as available (100%), probable (75%), questionable (50%), doubtful (25%) or out (0%) for the upcoming game.
Of course, that leaves room for subjectivity. For example, if Brandon has soreness but improving and on course to play in the game, he could be left off the report. Players can be added later in the week.
On game day, they are designated as available, game-time decision or out. But Brandon’s absence from the initial report is a good sign for the Vols.
Could George MacIntyre play against Auburn?
MacIntyre, the former Brentwood Academy standout, has played in three of UT’s four games this season. He got into the Furman and Kennesaw State games because UT held lopsided leads. He replaced the injured Brandon in the second quarter of the Texas game.
MacIntyre is 6-of-10 passing for 62 yards and one TD during his sophomore season. He was 7-of-9 passing for 69 yards as a freshman last season.
If Brandon remains off the SEC report, MacIntyre will be the backup in the Auburn game. But the Texas game demonstrated that he must be ready to play at a moment’s notice.
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: What Tennessee injury report means for Faizon Brandon, George MacIntyre vs Auburn
