Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava may very well be one of the stars of the 2024 season, and if his play in the Citrus Bowl was any indication of that — he could quickly become a superstar.
A former five-star recruit ranked as the No. 2 overall recruit in the 2023 class (per 247Sports), Iamaleava got the first start of his young career as a freshman against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl. It was a big spot against a really good defense, and all he did was throw for 151 yards and a touchdown while rushing for three more touchdowns on the ground.
He was confident, athletic and dynamic. Those are traits that he’s been showing throughout his whole career, per his head coach Josh Huepel at SEC Media Days. Those are also traits we should expect to continue translating into 2024.
“[Iamaleava] was highly recruited because of his athletic traits,” Heupel said, per On3. “He’s got the ability to throw the football sideline to sideline, vertically down the football field, extremely accurate. Loose, quick triggered arm. He’s got the ability to extend and make plays with his feet as a runner, that’s evading and making a play down the field.”
Iamaleava is the prototype of a dual-threat quarterback in today’s era of football, and if Tennessee can put any sort of a team around him, the Volunteers project to be a potential College Football Playoff team this season — especially since now it’s a 12-team field.
Iamaleava’s play on the field will play a huge role in any success Tennessee has in 2024, but Heupel relayed that his quarterback also has a massive impact because of his mindset and how he works.
“The thing that I loved about Nico is when he came into the building, he wanted to earn the respect of his teammates and you do that through your actions, not your words. Everybody understands how hard he works to become the best that he can at his craft. He takes great ownership in his skill set and developing it, understanding of our offense,” Heupel explained.
Getting the start and succeeding in the bowl game was the start for Iamaleava. Now, Heupel believes his quarterback has what it takes to start stacking that success into actual wins during the season.
“He’s had a great urgency in his preparation all offseason. I’m really excited to see his growth and development as a young quarterback throughout the course of this ’24 journey,” Heupel said.