Tennessee56
Furman9
Faizon Brandon accounted for five touchdowns in a debut that felt more like an arrival.
GridScape GameSuite
SEC Review Week 1
September 5, 2026
Sixteen teams. Sixteen wins. One spotless opening weekend for the SEC.
The SEC opened 16-0, but not all wins carry the same weight. LSU flattened Clemson 51-10, Auburn survived Baylor 17-16, and Ole Miss outlasted Louisville 41-38 in Sunday's encore.
In Knoxville, Tennessee introduced Faizon Brandon to college football and college football to Faizon Brandon. Five touchdowns later, the Vols had a 56-9 win and the conference had another reason to pay attention.
Every SEC Result
Georgia63
Tennessee State3
Georgia scored 28 in the first quarter and never looked back.
Texas59
Texas State7
Arch Manning threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns.
Texas A&M50
Missouri State0
The Aggies supplied opening weekend's cleanest shutout.
LSU51
Clemson10
LSU turned the weekend's marquee matchup into a four-quarter demolition.
Alabama48
East Carolina10
Alabama poured in 28 second-quarter points and handled its opener.
South Carolina57
Kent State0
The Gamecocks posted the league's other shutout and scored in every quarter.
Kentucky45
Youngstown State13
Kenny Minchey threw four touchdown passes in his Kentucky debut.
Auburn17
Baylor16
Auburn survived the tightest SEC game of opening weekend by one point.
Arkansas31
North Alabama14
Arkansas stayed patient and finished with 17 second-half points.
Vanderbilt28
Austin Peay9
Vanderbilt did enough, though this was more workmanlike than wonderful.
Mississippi State62
UL Monroe13
The Bulldogs stacked 41 first-half points and 62 for the afternoon.
Florida66
Florida Atlantic21
Jadan Baugh ran for 160 yards and three scores as Florida rolled.
Oklahoma51
UTEP0
Oklahoma scored 21 in the first quarter and pitched a shutout.
Missouri54
Arkansas-Pine Bluff14
Missouri rang up 40 first-half points and cruised from there.
Ole Miss41
Louisville38
Ole Miss finished the weekend by winning its Sunday shootout in Nashville.
| AP | Team | Overall | SEC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Georgia | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 5 | Texas | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 9 | Ole Miss | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 10 | Oklahoma | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 11 | LSU | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 13 | Alabama | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 20 | Tennessee | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 25 | Missouri | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Arkansas | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Auburn | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Florida | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Kentucky | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Mississippi State | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | South Carolina | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| — | Vanderbilt | 1-0 | 0-0 |
Records are through opening weekend. Rankings are the AP positions carried into Week 1. Ranked teams appear first in AP order; unranked teams follow alphabetically.
What It Means for Tennessee
The Vols did what a ranked team should do to Furman, but the quarterback changed the temperature. Brandon looked calm, explosive and ready for a much louder test. Five touchdowns will do that.
Results: ESPN SEC scoreboard. Tennessee statistics: Tennessee Athletics.