The Tennessee Volunteers football program is ready to potentially feature a star quarterback in 2024 with Nico Iamaleva being the starting quarterback. Tennessee last season finished with a 9-4 overall record and the Volunteers finished 4-4 in conference play.
The offense is going to show off its star quarterback this season. Iamaleava was the backup quarterback last season for Tennessee. This season, he will be the starting quarterback and has a chance to make a name for himself. During the 2023 season, he saw some snaps for the Volunteers.
He completed 62.2% of his passes for 314 yards and two touchdowns. Nico Iamaleava received playtime during the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl against the Iowa Hawkeyes because quarterback Joe Milton wanted to skip the bowl game and focus on the NFL Draft instead. The Tennessee Volunteers won that game over Iowa by a final score of 35-0.
As a college recruit, he was the fourth-ranked quarterback in the class of 2023 and was the 24th-ranked prospect overall on the ESPN 300. It was the highest recruit that head coach Josh Heupel has received during his coaching tenure with Tennessee.
Tennessee Volunteers Quarterback Nico Iamaleava Could Be a Top Pick In the 2026 NFL Draft
Iamaleava is just trying to prepare for his sophomore season with the Volunteers, but some people are out here already trying to hype him up as a number-one pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, including draft countdown’s Shane Hallam. That is still two years away and a lot can happen between now and then.
He was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and Iamaleava could be a stud down the road for the Volunteers. It is possible that he could be the consensus number-one pick in that class. Two other names to potentially watch for in 2026 would be Dante Moore from Oregon and Arch Manning from Texas. Manning is currently backing up Ewers for the Longhorns this season.
Nico Iamaleava could be in the conversation this season as one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC Conference along with players like Carson Beck from Georgia, Quinn Ewers from Texas, and Jaxson Dart from Ole Miss. Having a star quarterback in this offense could go a long way toward the Volunteers’ success down the road.
He could be the quarterback that takes the Tennessee Volunteers to the college football playoff this season or maybe next season depending on how the dominoes fall in the SEC Conference. Iamaleava is going to be the full-time starter for the Volunteers after being the backup quarterback last season. The offense is looking to take off after having a so-so quarterback play under head coach Josh Heupel.
