Tennessee freshman Faizon Brandon is one of only 21 quarterbacks in college football to not throw an interception this season.
The list gets even shorter when just considering full-time starters. Only nine quarterbacks have more pass attempts than Brandon’s 93 without throwing an interception.
It’s probably Brandon’s most impressive stat, especially for a freshman. A goal of any defense is to force the quarterback into making a grave mistake, and Brandon hasn’t made that particular one yet.
But is there a downside to Brandon’s admirable caution? Coach Josh Heupel hinted at that notion after reviewing the game film of Tennessee’s 20-17 loss to No. 1 Texas.
“(We) don’t want reckless decisions,” Heupel said on Sept. 28. “But in Saturday's game, there
were windows and opportunities (for passes). Timing or whatever it might be (were factors). But in some of those things, he's got to let it rip.”
Risk assessment appears to be Brandon’s next challenge as a college quarterback. Each of Tennessee’s successful quarterbacks went through it, but as older players. He’s got to do it after being tossed into the deep end of the SEC pool.
The 17th-ranked Vols (3-1, 0-1 SEC) play Auburn (3-1, 1-1) on Oct. 3 (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium.
Tennessee breakdowns put enormous burden on Faizon Brandon
The Texas game isn’t the best example of Brandon’s freshman missteps.
Tennessee’s interior offensive line was often obliterated by the Texas defense, which resulted in 10 sacks and constant pressure on Brandon. Running backs and tight ends also missed blocks.
Brandon suffered an apparent right shoulder injury and was briefly knocked out of the game. He also didn’t have the support of a ground game because of those breakdowns up front.
Texas often dropped seven or eight defenders into pass coverage because it beat Tennessee’s offensive line with only three or four pass rushers. That tightened the windows for Brandon to complete passes.
It was hard for Brandon to see open receivers under duress. And his arm strength may have been affected by the shoulder injury.
“When you’ve got a young quarterback, the 10 other guys around him got to do their job at a high level to alleviate unforeseen circumstances for that guy,” Heupel said. “(But regarding) all the protection problems, it’s not just five guys. It’s all the pieces working together.”
All those breakdowns are being addressed heading into the Auburn game. They put a heavy burden on Brandon to make plays out of nothing.
But that’s why the few opportunities for big passing plays against Texas were noticeable. And Brandon didn’t pull the trigger as often as he should have in those instances, probably out of reasonable caution amid dire circumstances.
Brandon was only 1-of-6 passing on attempts beyond 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. He should have more opportunities in upcoming games, and UT coaches want him to be confident and aggressive.
Hendon Hooker mastered 'let it rip but not recklessly'
Heupel’s “let it rip but not recklessly” instructions have been a staple of his quarterback coaching for years. Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Joey Halzle has often used the same mantra.
They tell their quarterbacks to be careful but also aggressive. It’s quite a dichotomy on its face. But when Tennessee quarterbacks have mastered that balance, they’ve been extremely effective.
Hendon Hooker threw 58 TD passes and five interceptions in 2021-22 at Tennessee. Joe Milton had 32 TD passes and five interceptions in 2021-23. Nico Iamaleava had 21 TD passes and five interceptions. Joey Aguilar had 24 TD passes and 10 interceptions.
All four quarterbacks played at other schools. But their best touchdown-to-interception ratio was at Tennessee. Notably, none of them were freshman starters at UT.
Brandon has completed 62% of his passes for 697 yards, seven TDs and no interceptions in four starts against Furman, Georgia Tech, Kennesaw State and Texas.
It’s a strong stat line to start a career. But his yardage and touchdowns likely would be higher if he took more calculated risks. Granted, that might add a couple of interceptions, as well.
But Heupel appears to be giving Brandon the green light to take chances more often. Of course, the young quarterback can’t move forward if his supporting cast allows defenses to push him backward.
“(Regarding) all the protection problems, it’s not just five guys,” Heupel said. “It's everybody involved in it. It’s tight ends. It’s backs. It’s quarterback. It’s wide receivers doing their job, too. It’s all those pieces working together.”
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 Faizon Brandon’s best stat points to problem for Tennessee football vs Auburn
