Elite QB Faizon Brandon remains 'locked in' with Vols' as two SEC programs keep recruiting him
Five-star Grimsley (N.C.) Quarterback Faizon Brandon has continued to be a frequent visitor on Rocky Top since committing to the Vols last August.
He returned to Knoxville over the weekend, and he continues to be a strong peer recruiter for Tennessee.
Over the weekend, Brandon spent time with four-star safety Joey O’Brien, four-star DL Damari Simeon, and five-star WR Tristen Keys.
“So I really come down here to just continue to build a relationship with Joey and then just help recruit the class, the ’26 class. If they’ve got any questions about anything, they can really just ask me, because that’s what I’ve been coming back here a lot to be able to do,” Brandon told Volquest of his role as a peer recruiter. “I can help them and give them more information, make them feel more comfortable every time they come down here.”
Brandon says he text “a lot” of guys about joining him at Tennessee as he is working to make it one of the top classes in the cycle. Two he specifically mentioned were five-star RB Savion Hiter and four-star OL Darius Gray.
“I’m feeling pretty good about the class so far,” the five-star said of this. “We’ve got Tyreek and Carson, and we’ve got some other guys. I’m really still trying to continue to try to make it the best class in the ’26.
Brandon knew early on during his visit process that Tennessee was the right choice for him. As he talks with others during visits, he tries to show them what he saw from Josh Heupel’s program.
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“I don’t think, on the other visits, don’t know how it felt for them, but for me, on the other visits, I didn’t really feel like I had a connection with the coaches like I do here,” Brandon said of this. “So I was just trying to get them to understand that and then see if they felt the same, when they come up for a visit, to just see how different it is from other schools.”
Brandon will continue to challenge for the top quarterback prospect in the cycle, and rightfully so, as he has been stellar during his high school career.
This is why a couple of SEC powers are still continuing to try and recruit them, but he does remind them that he is firm in his commitment to Tennessee.
“LSU and Alabama both, they continue to try to recruit me heavily,” he said of this. “But I let them know that I’m 100 percent locked in. But I won’t break any bonds or burn any bridges or anything like that. Still want to just keep relationships, because you never know what can happen, so I don’t try to brush them off or anything like that. I just keep the relationship. But I tell them that I’m locked in with Tennessee, though.”
He says he has no plans to check out either school, but he is planning to return to Knoxville again in April and will be back in June for official visits.
