Tennessee tabs true freshman Faizon Brandon starting QB, among several college football teams making decision for Week 1

The 2026 college football season begins this Saturday with an eight-game Week Zero. That leaves just under two weeks before most programs kick off their seasons. Several teams and their head coaches named their starting quarterbacks on Monday in preparation for Week 1.

Alabama named Keelon Russell its starter on Saturday, while other prominent QB competitions at Clemson, West Virginia, Vanderbilt and Iowa still haven’t been decided — at least publicly.

Here are several of the QBs who have been named starters for the season.

Faizon Brandon

The Volunteers are making true freshman Faizon Brandon their starting QB. Head coach Josh Heupel told the team of his decision on Monday morning and officially announced Brandon as the starter in an afternoon press conference.

Brandon, 6-foot-4, beat out sophomore George MacIntyre for the position, clinching the decision with his performance in a scrimmage on Saturday, according to On3. A five-star recruit, Rivals ranked Brandon as the No. 3 QB nationally and No. 10 player overall out of Grimsley High School in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Brandon becomes the first true freshman QB to start a season opener for Tennessee since Brent Schaeffer in 2004. He’ll be helped by an offense that returns eight starters, including 800-yard receivers Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews, in addition to 1,000-yard rusher DeSean Bishop. The Vols begin their season against Furman on Sept. 5.

New Gators head coach Jon Sumrall announced on Monday that transfer Aaron Philo would be the team’s starter. The 6-foot-1 junior came to Gainesville from Georgia Tech along with offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner. Familiarity with a system that includes many pre-snap motions likely gave him the edge over sophomore Tramell Jones Jr.

In two seasons with the Yellow Jackets, Phlio appeared in eight games and completed 58% of his passes for 938 yards, 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Jones played in two games as a freshman last year and completed 21 of 35 passes for 191 yards and 2 TDs.

Florida returns 1,000-yard rusher Jaden Baugh and leading receiver Vernell Brown III (40 catches), while adding transfer receivers Eric Singleton Jr. (534 yards for Auburan) and Micah Mays Jr. (302 yards with Wake Forest). The Gators kick off their season on Sept. 5 versus Florida Atlantic.

New Razorbacks coach Ryan Silverfield named sophomore KJ Jackson as the starter over transfer AJ HIll. Jackson is in his third year at Fayetteville and played in five games last season with one start, completing 61% of his passes for 441 yards and 3 TDs.

“It wasn’t an easy decision, but a very confident one we made as a staff,” Silverfield said on Sunday. “It wasn’t because of lack of talent by the others. It was a great mix of guys competing for that starting role.”

Arkansas kicks off its season on Sept. 5 against North Alabama.

Transferring from Michigan State, Aidan Chiles earned the nod for new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly. He beat out fellow transfer Nicco Marchiol and sophomore Ryan Boe in competition for the position.

Chiles played two seasons for the Spartans, following coach Jonathan Smith to East Lansing. He passed for 3,807 yards, 23 TDs and 14 INTs on a 61% completion rate, in addition to rushing for 429 yards and nine scores. Marchiol played four seasons at West Virginia, appearing in 23 games.

The Wildcats begin their season with home games against South Dakota State and Colorado before beginning Big Ten play by visiting defending national champion Indiana.

Transfer Dylan Lonergan was named the starter on Monday, beating out AJ Surace, who is in his third year with the Scarlet Knights. Head coach Greg Schiano and offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca made their decision after the team’s final scrimmage on Saturday, according to the Asbury Park Press.

The 6-foot-2 Lonergan began his career at Alabama before transferring to Boston College. Last season with the Eagles as a sophomore, he passed for 2,025 yards, 12 TDs and 5 INTs while completing 67% of his throws.

Rutgers plays BC in a Week 2 matchup at Chestnut Hill after opening the season versus UMass.

Transfer Zeon Chriss-Gremillion beat out Kadin Semonza, according to several reports. Chriss-Gremillion played the past few seasons for former Tulane head coach Willie Fritz, completing 62% of his passes for 932 yards, 5 TDs and 9 INTs. He has also rushed for 929 yards in 29 games during his college career, which began at Louisiana.

Semonza is in his second season at Tulane, but did not play last season. As a freshman at Ball State, he passed for 2,904 yards, 25 TDs and 10 INTs. Both Chriss-Gremillion and Semonza separated from freshman Trace Johnson during practices.

With new head coach Will Hall (taking over for Sumrall), the Green Wave begin their season at Duke on Sept. 5.

First-year head coach Brian Hartline named transfer Michael Van Buren Jr. the starter over fellow transfer Luke Kromenhoek. The Bulls begin their season versus FIU on Sept. 5.

The 6-foot junior played at LSU last season, backing up Garrett Nussmeier. But he started the final four games for the Tigers. In seven games, he totaled 1,010 yards, 8 TDs and 2 INTs, while rushing for an additional 129 yards.

Van Buren began his college career at Mississippi State as a four-star recruit, throwing for 1,886, 11 TDs and 7 INTs as a freshman.

Atkinson was announced as the Beavers’ starter on Monday, beating out incumbent Maalik Murphy and transfer Brady Jones. Oregon State has a tough start to the season, visiting Houston and hosting Texas Tech.

Last season at Mercer, Atkinson passed for 3,611 yards, 34 TDs and 11 INTs while competing 66% of his passes. That performance earned him the Jerry Rice Award as the best freshman in FCS.

Murphy started for Oregon State last year, passing for 1,805 yards, 9 TDs and 8 INTs. That was a decline from his sophomore season at Duke, when he threw for 2,933 yards, 26 TDs and 12 INTs. But Murphy was limited to 10 games in 2025 because of a hand injury.

The Eagles’ QB competition may not have been in the national spotlight, but Max Johnson being named the starter might warrant some attention.

Georgia Southern is Johnson’s fourth stop after stints at LSU, Texas A&M and North Carolina over six seasons. He’s thrown for 6.355 yards during his college career with 49 TDs and 13 INTs. As a sophomore at LSU, he passed for 2.814 yards and 27 TDs. In 2024 at UNC, he suffered a broken femur in his right leg that eventually required five surgeries.

The Eagles open their fifth season under head coach Clay Helton at home against Charleston Southern before visiting Clemson on Sept. 12.