Knoxville, Tenn. – Freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon accounted for 294 yards of offense and five touchdowns to power No. 18/20 Tennessee to a 56-9 victory over Furman before a crowd of 101,915 Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium.
Leading 7-0 in the second quarter, the Vols marched 42 yards on seven plays to double its lead at 14-0 on Brandon's six-yard touchdown run. Desean Bishop capped a 66-yard drive with a one-yard plunge with 3:05 left in the half and Tennessee forced a three-and-out by the Paladins before Brandon scored from seven yards out with 17 seconds remaining to give the Vols a 28-0 lead at the break.
Brandon opened the third quarter with touchdown passes covering 55 and 57 yards to Mike Matthews on Tennessee's first two drives of the half to complete his day with three touchdown tosses and 226 yards through the air. He added 68 yards and a pair of rushing touchdowns.
Furman got on the board with a career-long 50-yard field goal by
Nathan Chapman in the third quarter and
Isaiah Davis added a 23-yard touchdown run up the middle in the fourth quarter. Davis finished with a career-best 113 yards on eight carries. Defensive end
Eli Lipscomb led the Paladins with a sack and a fumble recovery.
The Vols (1-0) posted 329 yards on the ground and passed for 309 yards to compile 638 yards of total offense. The Paladins gained 221 yards, including 178 on the ground.
Furman (1-1) opens Southern Conference play next Saturday, September 12, when it travels to Macon, Ga., to battle the Mercer Bears. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the league opener will stream live on ESPN+.
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