Josh Heupel’s Tennessee football team enters 2026 aiming to rebound from last season’s 8-5 (4-4 SEC) record, which ended with a Music City Bowl loss to Illinois. In the offseason, Heupel and his staff worked tirelessly to secure the commitment of at least one talented, experienced quarterback expected to energize and lead the team.
This determined effort was motivated by the uncertainty surrounding Joey Aguilar’s petition to regain a year of eligibility, which was ultimately denied in February. As a result of this uncertainty, Colorado transfer Ryan Staub committed to Tennessee in January. Now, he will fiercely compete for the coveted spot against redshirt freshman George MacIntyre and five-star freshman Faizon Brandon.
Head Coach Josh Heupel Sees ‘Open Competition’ for Tennessee QB1
With this context, Tennessee started its first spring practice on Monday. Heupel told the media covering the Volunteers’ preparations for the 2026 season that there will be no clear favorite for the starting QB spot.
“(The competition) is open. We had that conversation with all of them as we started the winter, when they all arrived here. (And we) had that conversation again as we were wrapping up our winter before we got into spring ball,” Heupel said.
The 47-year-old head coach sounded like he will take his time choosing the starter for the Vols and insisted that the audition for the team’s top signal-caller will last until fall.
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“You have to push them in what they’re doing on the offensive side of the football,” Heupel said. “You have to force-feed those guys and expose them to what you’re going to need during the course of the fall.”
With Aguilar’s eligibility uncertain, and his petition to play another year ultimately denied, Tennessee explored transfer options. They hosted Arizona State transfer Sam Leavitt, who chose LSU. Other transfer portal QBs, like Brendan Sorsby and Beau Pribula, went to Texas Tech and Virginia, respectively.
Heupel Holds Day 1 of Spring Practice
On Monday, Heupel began spring practice by having quarterbacks MacIntyre, Brandon, Staub, and walk-on Mason Phillips participate in drills. Over the next 14 sessions, this process will help the veteran coach better understand the team and decide who will start against Furman in the season opener on Sept. 5.
As the competition starts, among the three main contenders for the quarterback position, MacIntyre is likely to take the lead over Brandon and Staub because of his familiarity with the system. The 6-foot-6 quarterback played two games last season and completed 7-of-9 passes for 69 yards.
The Tennessee head coach said that Brandon, as a freshman, might face common first-year challenges, such as adjusting to the system’s faster pace and greater complexity. Meanwhile, MacIntyre could have an advantage because of his current experience, and Staub’s college playing time might boost his confidence, but he still needs to adapt to the SEC level.
“You’re patient in understanding that, just like every player inside your program, there’s going to be growth. There’s going to be mistakes,” Heupel said. “What you want to see is them not making the same mistake twice. Constant growth in what they’re doing and how they’re controlling things at the quarterback position.”
Staub, on the other hand, played three seasons with Colorado, completing 53.5% of his passes for 681 yards in 12 games. The incoming junior had 4 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He also rushed for 8 yards and scored 1 touchdown during his time with the Buffaloes.
The season opener at Neyland Stadium will see Tennessee aim to extend its historic lead over Furman, having won both previous meetings in the 1940s by a combined score of 84-13.
