'26 NC QB Faizon Brandon (Tennessee commit)

[Adam2014]

I read up on this a little more... As many of you know, Rivals and ON3 merged recently. From what I understand, they are merging their ranking systems as well. Faizon was moved to 34 in the ON3 rankings in January, so this is basically a similar ranking. It was not a complete switch though because they did change the rankings of several players.

 

[Woodlawn VOL]

Rivals is on crack. The sports politics of camps and paying paying sites is real. Give me Faizon all day, going to serve as nothing but motivation for him. GBO

 

[WillisWG]

Also in Rivals’ new rankings, slot receiver Tyreek King took a big drop. After knocking on the door of five-star status in Rivals’ old rankings, the Tennessee commit is now the No. 60 player in the class and No. 9 receiver. Just behind him, new four-star offensive line commit J.B. Shabazz registers as the No. 65 recruit and No. 9 offensive tackle.

Linebacker commit TJ White clocks in at No. 71 and the No. 5 linebacker in the cycle. Fellow linebacker Brayden Rouse is down at No. 125 and No. 7 at the position. Athlete Legend Bey is at No. 280 and in-state edge rusher Zach Groves rounds out the list at No. 300.

A notable omission is offensive tackle Gabriel Osenda. He is a five-star according to 247, but registers as a three-star in Rivals’ new rankings. Tight end Carson Sneed, who was previously a four-star recruit, has also dropped to three-star status.

Tennessee Football's QB Commit Faizon Brandon Stripped of Five-Star Status by Rivals | Rocky Top Insider

In the latest class of 2026 rankings, Tennessee football quarterback commit Faizon Brandon took a significant tumble.

www.rockytopinsider.com

 

[cncchris33]

We are talking about a company that was started by a man who left to start a competing company, then left that company to start another competing company that ended up buying the original company he started.

We'll not make sense of their decisions.

 

[Jackcrevol]

Also in Rivals’ new rankings, slot receiver Tyreek King took a big drop. After knocking on the door of five-star status in Rivals’ old rankings, the Tennessee commit is now the No. 60 player in the class and No. 9 receiver. Just behind him, new four-star offensive line commit J.B. Shabazz registers as the No. 65 recruit and No. 9 offensive tackle.

Linebacker commit TJ White clocks in at No. 71 and the No. 5 linebacker in the cycle. Fellow linebacker Brayden Rouse is down at No. 125 and No. 7 at the position. Athlete Legend Bey is at No. 280 and in-state edge rusher Zach Groves rounds out the list at No. 300.

A notable omission is offensive tackle Gabriel Osenda. He is a five-star according to 247, but registers as a three-star in Rivals’ new rankings. Tight end Carson Sneed, who was previously a four-star recruit, has also dropped to three-star status.

Tennessee Football's QB Commit Faizon Brandon Stripped of Five-Star Status by Rivals | Rocky Top Insider

In the latest class of 2026 rankings, Tennessee football quarterback commit Faizon Brandon took a significant tumble.

www.rockytopinsider.com

been this way for years. not surprising.

We have a great class so far.

 

[Blake25p]

FYI Faizon was always in the 30’s with ON3, still a 5* on 247 and ESPN. I suspect he’ll be a 5* on all 3 sites come signing day.

 

[Jackcrevol]

FYI Faizon was always in the 30’s with ON3, still a 5* on 247 and ESPN. I suspect he’ll be a 5* on all 3 sites come signing day.

Would take Faizon over any QB.

 

[#Vol4Life1991]

Genuine question: with rivals showcasing their rankings, why do they list low few 5 ️s? I assume they will change it closer to nsd. Is it for clicks n convo farming?

 

[SpringBokVol]

All I care about is Faizon getting to campus and us not wasting his window.

 

[sjt18]

LOL. This is as predictable as rain in Seattle. Hope the kid isn't hurt by it... just a part of committing to UT.

 

[LittleVol]

Grimsley plays the # 3 ranked team overall in Virginia in week 8 I believe. Varina out of Richmond.

They also play West Charlotte the defending 3A State Champions. Then they play in a difficult region.

He’ll face good competition, and he will outshine all of them.

Dia Bell for AHS plays great HS competition this season as well. It’ll be interesting to see who has the better numbers by season end.

 

[JCVol00]

Only thing I can think of is lack of hs production, or moreso not running his numbers up. He plays in a run heavy offense, and they were up by so much in most of his games that they pulled him at halftime

 

[allvolrecruiting]

I will say On3 had him lower than everyone else and this is their stuff now, but what could he have done to drop a star rating lol

 

[Vol423]

I will say On3 had him lower than everyone else and this is their stuff now, but what could he have done to drop a star rating lol

He obviously looked WAY too impressive at the Elite 11.

 

[VolInDayton]

Faizon is a higher ceiling Hendon Hooker. He absolutely destroys the competition he plays. He's the perfect style of player for our offense. They could drop him to a 3 star and I will still be excited to see him shine on Saturdays under the lights in Neyland.

 

[DaddyChad]

I would love to see an explanation of this.

Let me explain to you. Some recruiting services like to slurp on longhorn balls.

 

[Orange.]

been this way for years. not surprising.

We have a great class so far.

Yeah.

Just remember this if you don’t like how we finish in the team rankings. These guys are affecting those numbers in the process. Fortunately they can’t affect the high quality of this class. Faizon is da

 

[Jackcrevol]

Yeah.

Just remember this if you don’t like how we finish in the team rankings. These guys are affecting those numbers in the process. Fortunately they can’t affect the high quality of this class. Faizon is da

They (rivals) had to even the playing field. I get what you're saying though.

 

[Weezer]

I've decided On3 sucks. They have fallen behind 247, ESPN, and the defunct Scout in my recruiting services rankings.

 

[NighthawkVol]

It’s almost like recruiting rankings aren’t the infallible scientific institutions that many think they are.

Faizon is the same player now that he was a few months ago. Changing his ranking doesn’t make that untrue.

 

[UTK]

Thinking Jared Curtis is a better prospect is insanity imo. I’ll just say that

 

[barrylee]

I am not one of these people who traffics in conspiracies but we all know if Faizon was committed to bama, osu or tejas, he would be top 5 in every site!

 

[Enki_Amenra]

These recruiting services are/were owned/opened by the same person. It's highly likely that they are working together to manufacture "buzz" around recruiting to keep people talking about them. It's a business and sometimes you have to create something out of nothing to keep the cash flowing and increase relevance.

No doubt it my mind these moves were made to get people talking and it's not surprising that these moves impact one of the most passionate fan bases in America. I'd say it has almost nothing to do with the player's actual ability and more to do with making these services more profitable and popular.

It's just a matter of time until people realize what they're doing and see that these services don't provide accurate information on the player's they cover.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

I am not one of these people who traffics in conspiracies but we all know if Faizon was committed to bama, osu or tejas, he would be top 5 in every site!

Guess it is tempting to attempt to tailor class rankings to match historical end of season polls, at the detriment of some kids. Any on field performances by the winners and losers to support the shuffle? Legal or character issues?

This damages credibility for me if not supported.

 

[mrMet]

Thinking Jared Curtis is a better prospect is insanity imo. I’ll just say that

Curtis is a stud though