Editor’s note: As part of The Tennessean’s season-long, all-access series about the Brentwood Academy football program, we chronicled Tennessee-bound quarterback George MacIntyre’s first game in Knoxville, a 63-26 victory against Knoxville Catholic. To follow along with the series, please subscribe to The Tennessean here.

KNOXVILLE − The lights at Hollin Field flickered on the moment the clock struck 6 p.m. Thursday, an hour before Brentwood Academy senior quarterback George MacIntyre made his football playing debut in a city he’ll call his second home come Dec. 15.

The lights were shining on the Tennessee recruit long before then, though.

A couple of hours before the Eagles’ 63-26 victory at Knoxville Catholic High School, MacInytre chatted at length with a local TV reporter outside his team’s locker room.

An hour later, before MacIntyre so much as stepped foot on the field for pregame warmups, two men holding cameras glued their lenses to his every move.

That number had swollen to eight by the time MacIntyre weaved his way through traffic that included curious Tennessee fans hoping to catch an up-close glimpse before he marched onto the field with fellow captains Jacob Atkins, Darryl Hammond and Gavin Schaffer for the pregame coin flip.

Not to mention the blue and white ABC-5 truck with the satellite dish stuck to its roof it parked on the track behind the home team’s sideline, or the other local TV truck next to it that was there to televise the game.

None of the pomp, none of the circumstance phased MacIntyre.

“He’s so low-key about it,” MacIntyre’s father, Matt, said after situating himself at the tippy-top of the visiting bleachers before the game.

His play was anything but, though. He was 13-for-16 passing for 246 yards and two touchdowns.

‘Come here and handle business’

So, George, were you excited about Thursday?

About playing where you’ll soon be staying?

About the fact that your soon-to-be college coach, Josh Heupel, had a front-row seat for the show from the Brentwood Academy sideline?

Like, at all?

“A little bit,” he said. “I didn’t put much thought into it.

“We play a lot of long road games − Memphis, Chattanooga. It’s just the first time we’ve been in Knoxville. My thought was to come here and handle business.”

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The kid of few words let his play do the talking.

And talk it did.

Loudly and clearly.

Not a game of cat and mouse

MacIntyre planted both feet firmly on his own 15-yard line and barked out last-second orders before he took his first snap. Ball in his right hand, he surveyed the scene, cocked his arm and locked eyes with sophomore receiver Kesean Bowman.

Before eyes on him could blink, before those cameras could click, the ball went from MacIntyre’s right hand into Bowman’s hands, ending in the end zone 80 yards away.

This sort of scene repeated itself often.

MacIntyre to Bowman. MacIntyre to Neo Clifton. MacIntyre to Bowman again.

MacIntyre to William Cypers for a touchdown in the third quarter, too.

“There weren’t too many plays where I thought we were the mouse and the other team was the cat,” MacIntyre said.

MacIntyre and the Eagles (5-3, 1-2 in Division II-AAA East) were the cats this time.

Cats who are going into fall break, with an off week next week.

MacIntyre stayed behind in Knoxville after Thursday’s game. Plans to take in the Volunteers’ game Saturday against Florida, then head to the beach for a few days away from football.

Thursday night, though, was the first of what MacIntyre and the Volunteers hope will be plenty of great performances in Knoxville.

Paul Skrbina is a sports enterprise reporter covering the Predators, Titans, Nashville SC, local colleges and local sports for The Tennessean. Reach him at pskrbina@tennessean.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @paulskrbina. Follow his work here.

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The Tennessee Titans are fresh off their bye week and they are getting ready to go back into action against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 6.

With their bodies rested, the Titans could see the return of defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, who missed the team’s Week 4 matchup with an elbow injury.

“He’ll be working through that elbow injury this week and we’ll see where he stands but hopeful that he’s ready to roll,” Titans coach Brian Callahan said via team reporter Jim Wyatt.

Simmons suffered the injury while preparing for their matchup against the Miami Dolphins, so he has had two weeks of no contact with his elbow, which could be exactly what he needs in order to return.

“These guys know their bodies and our training staff—I’m not the doctor on those things and they rely on those opinions,” Callahan said. “And again, everything that we had prior to and at this point is that it’s needed a little bit of time to heal and they would be better in a week’s time, be better in two weeks’ time, and that was the genesis behind the decision to sit him a Monday night is that he’d be able to, in really two weeks’ time from the injury, it would be in a much better spot. So, ultimately that’s where we landed on it because it would be in his best interest for longevity’s case to keep him out.”

With the defensive line already struggling with injuries, Simmons’ value for the unit only intensifies. That’s why the Titans also kept him out of today’s practice, but Callahan insisted that he is only being held out to rest and that he should be back later in the week ahead of the team’s game against the Colts.

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Tennessee men’s basketball tips off the regular season in less than a month against Gardner-Webb at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.

However, before the Vols take on the Runnin’ Bulldogs on Nov. 4, Rick Barnes’ squad has a charity exhibition scheduled against Indiana for Sunday, Oct. 27 in Knoxville.

The exhibition now appears to have a time and TV network associated with it; the Vols and Hoosiers will square off at 3 p.m. ET, with SEC Network+ handling the broadcast duties. The information was made available on Tennessee’s schedule website.

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“We are thrilled to host one of the best programs in the nation and support a worthy cause at the same time. I have a great deal of respect for Coach (Mike) Woodson and I look forward to sharing a sideline with him for the first time,” Barnes said in a statement in August when the exhibition was announced.

“Indiana’s first visit to Knoxville provides an excellent test for our guys before the season officially begins. Most of all, though, it is a great way to raise money for an impactful organization whose mission I fully support.”

Per NCAA rules, proceeds from the game will go to charity, specifically the John McLendon Foundation, which offers scholarships for minority students who intend to pursue a postgraduate degree in athletics administration.

Tennessee trails the all-time series with Indiana 0-4, with the most recent meeting in 1985 in the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The Vols are coming off a 27-9 overall season under Barnes, making the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 2 seed. Meanwhile, Indiana is coming off a slightly underwhelming 19-14 season and missing out on the NCAA Tournament.

The Hoosiers, led by former Arizona forward Oumar Ballo, the No. 2-ranked transfer this past season, per 247Sports Composite, were projected to finish second in the Big Ten in a preseason poll conducted by The Columbus Dispatch and The Indianapolis Star.

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