Josh Heupel proud of Nico Iamaleava’s outing after starting debut
Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava throws a pass downfield during the second quarter against Iowa Monday January 1, 2024 at Camping World Stadium. (Lynn Harrington/stayaliveinpower5)
ORLANDO, Fla. — Tennessee’s true freshman quarterback passed the test with flying colors in Monday’s Cheez-It Citrus Bowl win over Iowa, and raised his coach’s eyebrows during the process.
Nico Iamaleava’s never viewed his inexperience as a weakness. Which is why Coach Josh Heupel let the young signal-caller spread his wings in the offense for his first career start, despite it being against one of the nation’s best defenses.
The former five-star prospect didn’t disappoint in the 35-0 victory either. He filled in nicely for Joe Milton, and gave Volunteer fans a taste of what he brings to the offene. Iamaleava wowed the crowd of 43,861 at Camping World Stadium with his breathtaking mobility. Not to mention the Volunteers’ tempo gave the Hawkeyes problems throughout the afternoon.
Heupel thought Iamaleava’s performance was promising, considering the way he operated the offense, and made others around him better.
“I thought he (Iamaleava) handled himself composed all day long, subtle things of breaking the huddle, communication inside of the huddle, controlling the run game, his eyes were in the right place,” Heupel said. “Great to see a young guy go out and perform in that way in his first career start.”
Iamaleava completed 12 of his 19 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown. The Californian also added three rushing scores. Iamaleava used his legs to improvise, extend plays and locate receivers downfield. He connected with tight end McCallan Castles for an 18-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Volunteers never trailed in the game with Iamaleava behind center, and the offense didn’t commit any turnovers. The gunslinger played with moxie, and his teammates fed off his energy. Iamaleava also helped Tennessee lead Iowa in total offense, plays, first downs and time of possession. Although Iamaleava feels good about his execution on the gridiron, he refuses to stay complacent. At the end of the day, he’s always striving for improvement.
“Felt good to get back out there and get my feet wet,” Iamaleava said. “Yeah, I am proud of the guys and how they played, the receivers played a tremendous game, and O-line did good, but I still think there is a lot of room for us to get better.”
The 19-year old gave a lot of credit to Milton for helping him prepare for the bowl game, and is ready to carry the torch. For his heroics, Iamaleava was named the MVP of the contest. He even hoisted the Cheez-It Bowl belt with his daughter in his arms afterwards, as all of the confetti showered the Volunteers.
The Tennessee fans had a tremendous turnout in Orlando, and heavily outnumbered Iowa’s. That made Iamaleava more comfortable in the pocket, and he didn’t feel no pressure. Now Heupel feels the offense is going to be in good hands with Iamaleava approaching the off-season. The third-year coach just wants the six-foot-six, 206-pounder to build off this outing, and carry that momentum into spring ball.
“There are a lot of things that Nico can continue to grow and will continue to grow in, but I believe he is going to be a great, dynamic playmaker.”
