RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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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.
Tennessee: 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.
THROWBACK: Faizon Brandon showing off his arm at Grimsley (NC)🔥 Brandon is just the second true freshman to start a season opener at QB for Tennessee. (via @JeffreyMarcin ) https://t.co/nJFIzwvRqM https://t.co/3brFfA94Ab pic.twitter.com/TARCoi95gm
— Rivals High School (@RivalsHS) August 24, 2026
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.
Florida: Aaron Philo
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.
Aaron Philo has been named the starting QB for Florida in week 1. Here are all of his 28 pass attempts from his freshman year vs Gardner Webb. pic.twitter.com/qhzLpkkCms
— Yahya Hasan (@sportsballpm) August 24, 2026
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.
Arkansas: KJ Jackson
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.
Had some time this week due to multiple snow days in a row, so here are KJ Jackson's highlights from last season: pic.twitter.com/gNodGQbkCk
— WarMachine2013 (@WarMachine2013) January 28, 2026
"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.
Northwestern: Aidan Chiles
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.
MY GOODNESS, AIDAN CHILES 😱 @MSU_Football 📺: NBC pic.twitter.com/Geou6jZge7
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) September 7, 2025
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.
Rutgers: Dylan Lonergan
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 .
Newly named starting QB at Rutgers, Dylan Lonergan (9- 6’2”/210) here vs GT last season. From his own EZ. Climbs to avoid the edge pressure and bangs the dig in-stride for a big gain! pic.twitter.com/E2V3TNaZTC
— Alex King (@AKing_Evals) August 24, 2026
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.
Tulane: Zeon Chriss-Gremillion
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.
Former Louisiana and Houston starting QB Zeon Chriss-Gremillion gets the QB1 nod at Tulane pic.twitter.com/BauEG6L7M8 https://t.co/HwF045x0zN
— Steve Helwick (@s_helwick) August 24, 2026
Semonza is in his second season at Tulane, but did not play las...
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