Damon, I think you should add that Fountain Pitts Yell, who later became colonel of the 26th, was the son of General Yell. I'd speculate that General Yell had this extra incentive to help with the recruiting of the 26th. FP Yell had attended a military school in TN (Western Military Institute, part of the University of Nashville) and law school in Lebanon, TN, and thus was (by the standards of the time) more qualified than most to be an officer.
I've never found an image of either Cols. Yell of Brooks.