Can Josh Heupel Finally Avoid the "Heupel Loss" in 2026?

Tennessee football is entering the 2026 season with enormous expectations, but is this finally the year the Volunteers take the next step under Josh Heupel? On this episode of the A to Z Sports Big Orange Podcast, Charlie Burris and Zach Ragan ask three huge questions about Tennessee football heading into the season. Is this the year Josh Heupel makes the correct quarterback decision the first time? Is this the year new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles gets his defense playing at a high level immediately? And perhaps most importantly, is this the year Tennessee finally avoids the dreaded "Heupel loss" against a team the Vols should beat? The conversation begins with the latest Tennessee fall camp news. Ty Redmond returned to practice after missing time with an illness, although he was working on the side, while Ethan Davis remained out with an undisclosed injury. The guys also discuss comments from Tennessee offensive line coach Glen Elarbee, who was remarkably candid about the performance of his offensive line during the 2025 season. Elarbee acknowledged that his group struggled when it mattered most, creating significant expectations for a talented 2026 offensive line featuring players such as David Sanders. Charlie and Zach then turn their attention to Tennessee's biggest offseason question: the quarterback competition between Faizon Brandon and George MacIntyre. Is this finally the year Josh Heupel gets his quarterback decision right on the first attempt? The hosts revisit Heupel's decision to start Joe Milton over Hendon Hooker in 2021 and discuss why the quarterback position can be so difficult to evaluate before the lights come on. With Tennessee's first scrimmage approaching, the quarterback battle is entering an important stage, and the second scrimmage could help determine when the Vols ultimately settle on a starter. The podcast also examines Jim Knowles' first season as Tennessee's defensive coordinator. Knowles has said his defense is progressing faster than it did at previous stops because he was able to bring coaches and players familiar with his system to Knoxville. Charlie and Zach discuss whether that continuity, combined with Tennessee's work under new strength and conditioning coach Derek Owings, could allow the Vols defense to make a dramatic improvement from last season. Finally, the guys tackle one of the most important questions for Tennessee's 2026 season: Can Josh Heupel avoid another "Heupel loss"? The hosts identify several games where Tennessee could potentially stumble, including Georgia Tech, Auburn, Arkansas, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. With a young quarterback potentially making his first SEC road starts, Tennessee could be more vulnerable to an upset than in previous seasons. The discussion also explores the increasing parity in college football. With NIL, the transfer portal and roster movement creating more competitive balance across the SEC, Charlie and Zach argue that there are fewer truly "unbeatable" games than ever before. Even highly talented teams can lose to unexpected opponents, making Tennessee's ability to avoid bad losses especially important if the Vols want to compete for the SEC Championship and College Football Playoff. With the first Tennessee football scrimmage coming up Saturday, the answers to these questions are about to become much clearer. Is this finally the year for Tennessee? Watch the latest Big Orange Podcast featuring Charlie Burris and Zach Ragan for the latest Tennessee Volunteers football news, fall camp analysis, quarterback battle updates, Jim Knowles' defense, Josh Heupel analysis, SEC football discussion and everything surrounding the Vols heading into the 2026 season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices