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ESPN: Faizon Brandon and Tennessee are Elite 11's best fit between commit, program

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•06/23/25•

GrantRamey

Faizon Brandon, Tennessee Football
Faizon Brandon, Tennessee Football

Faizon Brandon and Tennessee Football is the best fit between player and team among the Elite 11 quarterbacks, according to ESPN. Tom Luginbill ranked the best fits for the committed quarterbacks at the annual event, with the Vols and their five-star future QB coming in at No. 1.

“Tennessee’s scheme is plug-and-play friendly,” Luginbill wrote, “and fits Brandon’s big arm and sneaky mobility.” 

Brandon, the 6-foot-3.5, 195 pounder out of Greensboro, N.C., is a five-star prospect in the On3 Industry Ranking, coming in at No. 13 overall in the 2026 class. 

Faizon Brandon ranked as No. 3 quarterback in 2026 class

He’s the No. 3 quarterback in the country — only five-star Jared Curtis and five-star Dia Bell are ranked ahead of Brandon — and is the No. 1 overall player in the state of North Carolina. 

“There’s a clear trend emerging in Knoxville when it comes to quarterback traits in terms of stature, athleticism and arm strength,” Luginbill continued. “Brandon checks all three boxes. He’s very similar to former Vols standout Hendon Hooker and is further along developmentally than Hooker was at Brandon’s age.”

Hooker starred in two seasons at Tennessee in Josh Heupel’s offense, after transferring from Virginia Tech. He threw for 6,080 yards, 58 touchdowns and just five interceptions in 24 games with the Vols.

Tennessee is starting over at quarterback after Nico Iamaleava left the Vols in April, entering the NCAA Transfer Portal and landing at UCLA. 

Heupel countered by adding Joey Aguilar, the former Appalachian State quarterback who had transferred to UCLA in December, then entered the portal in April after the Bruins added Iamaleava.

This season it will be Aguilar battling redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger and freshman George MacIntyre for the quarterback job this season. 

Tennessee was Faizon Brandon’s first Power 4 offer

Brandon committed to Tennessee last August. The Vols were his first Power 4 offer in June 2023 and he visited Knoxville multiple times before announcing his commitment. 

“Though not quite as polished as Nico Iamaleava coming out of high school, Brandon throws a great deep ball, which Tennessee coach Josh Heupel requires from all his quarterbacks. 

“By the time he arrives on campus, it’s likely at least one quarterback currently on the Tennessee roster will have hit the transfer portal.”

Brandon was back on campus at Tennessee for an official visit last week. 

“I would say it was great, being able to come back with a new set of guys and being able to recruit them. We had some wide receivers here that I was working on. Overall it was a great visit.”

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