The Tennessee Volunteers are just a few days into fall camp in the lead up to the 2024 season and they’ve already experienced their first critical injury to a likely starter. Jourdan Thomas had never started a game for the Vols at the Nickel position in this defense. However, he had played in 25 games at a position that’s extremely young and lacks a plethora of options.

News broke Sunday that Thomas is expected to miss the season with a knee injury suffered in practice.

Preseason NICKEL Depth Chart:
– Jourdan Thomas
– Boo Carter
– Christian Harrison
Thomas has played in 25 football games in two seasons in Knoxville, but never in a starting role. This is a major growth season for Thomas. Freshman Boo Carter has shown reasons for optimism for his career moving forward.

Now, the Vols will likely look to the uber-talented Boo Carter. Carter has already garnered the attention of the coaching staff, even prior to Thomas’ injury. Tennessee defensive coordinator Tim Banks had this to say about Carter. “Boo is great energy all the time. He is a guy that is always 100 miles per hour. I think as he continues to grow in our program, he will continue to get a little bit more mature. We definitely like what he brings from a football perspective. He is a kid that works hard and wants to do well. He has shown some maturity, but I think you will see more once he gets his feet wet a little bit.”

Well, he’s going to be thrown into the deep end now, there will be now getting the feet wet.

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Tennessee Lands 5-star Faizon Brandon And The #1 Qb In The Country Talks Decision

Another cycle, another splash in the world of quarterback recruiting for Tennessee.

A massive push from head coach Josh Heupel, offensive coordinator Joey Halzle and Co. paid off in a major way on Saturday, as Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley five-star QB Faizon Brandon announced his pledge to the Volunteers.

“I started feeling Tennessee a while ago,” Brandon told On3. “They started recruiting me early, and the first impression they made on me was unlike any other. The staff recruited me hard from the get-go, they kept it steady with me and they pushed so hard to get me. All of that made an impact on why I picked them.”

On3’s No. 1 gunslinger in the junior class, Brandon becomes the latest win amidst an absurd run of recruiting under center in Knoxville. How did the Vols do it? Tennessee recruiting insider Austin Price points to multiple reasons, dating back to Brandon’s first time on Rocky Top.

“He fell in love with the place and so did his family. His mom told me that she kind of new that first trip to Knoxville, when he camped back in June 2023, she’s like ‘I just felt this place was special.’ Got to know coach Halzle, coach Heupel, coach Militello, just fell in love with it,” Price told On3’s Josh Newberg.

“They kept coming back. They were there multiple times last summer, multiple games last fall, multiple times since the first of the year. Got there at the end of July and told the coaching staff this past weekend that he was headed for Knoxville and they were super stoked.”

Brandon the latest example of Vols’ successful QB recruiting strategy

Brandon’s commitment makes four consecutive cycles that Tennessee has landed a blue-chip QB who ranks as one of the top 15 signal-callers in the On3 Industry Ranking. Point blank, the QB room in Knoxville is likely set for years to come.

“Stacking arms is right,” Price said. “Nico (Iamaleava), to Jake Merklinger, to George MacIntyre, now to Faizon Brandon — who again, just turned 16. There are other quarterbacks in his class that are almost 18. This kid is young and his best football is still ahead of him.”

“Tennessee has done a nice job of identifying, building relationships and working to get those kids in the boat. It’s been really impressive to see how Joey Halzle has transformed from just a quarterbacks coach to now an offensive coordinator who knows how to develop and recruit quarterbacks as well.”

What is Tennessee getting in Faizon Brandon? According to On3 Director of Scouting and Rankings Charles Power, Brandon “is one of the more gifted athletes among the top 2026 quarterbacks.” Price echoes just that, comparing the junior to Tennessee’s incoming starter this season.

“Much like Nico, he is a quarterback that can make plays with his feet, but ultimately he’s a thrower. He’s a smart, heady kid, has good velocity on his fastball when he’s throwing it and needs to fit in into a tight window, but also has touch,” Price said. “He kind of does a little bit of everything well.”

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel is becoming the “QB Recruit” whisper of sorts, having locked down an impressive roster of highly rated arm talent that should—if you’re able to look beyond the NIL-fueled flips of the modern era—create a solid quarterback room well toward the end of the decade.

Heupel further exemplified his recruiting prowess on Saturday after landing the major commitment of Faizon Brandon, the No. 1 QB in the class of 2026, over SEC powers Alabama and LSU.

With Brandon now part of the Vols’ future, here’s a look at the QB room assembled by the former Oklahoma Sooners slinger…

Nico Iamaleava, Warren (Downey, Calif.) — No.2 QB in Class of 2023

(USA TODAY)

Jake Merklinger, Calvary Day School (Savannah, Ga.) — No.13 QB in Class of 2024

(USA TODAY)

George MacIntyre, Brentwood Academy (Tenn.) — No. 69 QB in Class of 2025

(USA TODAY)

It should be noted—and really, headlined—that MacIntyre was rated as a top-10 quarterback until a hand injury forced him to miss camps, creating a tailspin among the recruiting sites.

Faizon Brandon, Grimsley (Greensboro, N.C.) — No. 1 QB in Class of 2026

(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel’s haul

(USA TODAY)

2024 class: Ranked No. 14

2025 class: Ranked No. 7

2026 class: Ranked No. 28 (which should change by Monday)

This article originally appeared on High School Sports Wire: Tennessee Vols’ QB room is stacked for the future