Jeremy Pruitt names Brian Maurer starting quarterback against Mississippi State

Jeremy Pruitt really wasn’t fooling anyone, but he probably knew that. Pruitt told reporters after the Georgia game on Saturday night that he would have to watch the film to determine a starting quarterback for the Mississippi State game.

On Monday, Pruitt admitted that Maurer would have to have a pretty bad week of practice to not start against the Bulldogs. This afternoon, Pruitt just came out and said it.

“Well, I mean, Brian will be the starting quarterback Saturday,” Pruitt said after practice. “I mean, I think everybody would know that, right?”

The true freshman quarterback injected life into the Tennessee offense — a unit that badly needed it after a 1-3 start. Though Tennessee fell to 1-4 against Georgia, the improvement in the offense was obvious, at least in the first half.

Maurer ended the day 14-28 for 259 yards and two touchdowns. His aggressiveness down the field and decisiveness in the pocket were clear upgrades for Tennessee. With a winnable game coming up on Saturday at noon against Mississippi State, Maurer will get another chance to show what he’s got.

For a team that currently sits at 1-4 on the year, Maurer’s development instantly becomes the storyline to follow for the rest of this season.