The redshirt freshman season was a bit up and down for quarterback Nico Iamaleava, but when the starting quarterback for the Tennessee football team caught fire for the Vols, he was fun to watch. Behind Iamaleava’s strong play, Tennessee posted a 10-win campaign.
Not only that, but the Vols reached the College Football Playoff for the first time. While UT was dominated at The Shoe by Ohio State, we can’t forget that the Buckeyes went on to win it all – Nico and Co. get a pass there.
With that said, what can Josh Heupel expect out of his QB1 in his second season leading the offense out onto the field? Vols fans are hopeful Iamaleava can take a step forward and help Tennessee push for an SEC title/return trip to the CFP. However, not everyone is feeling overly optimistic about the youngster taking a giant step forward in 2025.
Will Nico Iamaleava be able to take a big step forward in 2025?
“It comes down, can your quarterback make this sizeable step to where you’re looking at that game against Ohio State and do you trust Nico Iamaleava to win a playoff game and at this point, I don’t know the answer to that question,” 247 Sports’ National Recruiting Analyst Cooper Petagna said. “Right now if I had to bet on it, it’s no, so he’s gotta continue to play into the ceiling of what we think he can be.”
It’s hard to argue with what Petagna had to say here. There were times last season where Iamaleava (2,616 passing yards and 19 touchdowns) looked sensational, but then there were other times where he’d miss easy throws. The deep ball was something that gave him issues throughout the campaign.
That’s something that needs to be cleaned up. The fact that SEC Offensive Player of the Year Dylan Sampson is off to the NFL is going to sting for the second-year starter too, as there will be more pressure on him to keep the offense playing at a stellar level.
The Vols surprised plenty of people in 2024 and the same thing needs to be the case in 2025 as well. Iamaleava is facing a ton of pressure as the face of the program, that’s a given. Will he be able to prove some of his doubters wrong? He’s going to have to if Tennessee wants to get back to the CFP for the second consecutive year.
