Before Joe Milton left Tennessee, he handed the reigns to blue-chip quarterback prospect Nico Iamaleava. After Milton opted out of the Citrus Bowl, Iamaleava proved his ranking by flourishing in his first career start.
Speaking with On3’s Andy Staples, Milton explained the relationship he developed with Iamaleava, and what role he played in the former five-star recruit’s development during his first year with the Volunteers program.
“Taking them under my wing, getting him to understand what was going on,” Milton told Staples. “He’s a smart kid. He is very talented, so just getting him to understand that mistakes are going to happen. You coming from high school, so you didn’t really have to face adversity as much. Being the number one quarterback in the country, coming into college he had to wait a year. So being able to ask me whatever he wants to ask me, and me willing to take the time out of my day to help him out.”
During his postgame speech after defeating Iowa 35-0 in the Citrus Bowl while accepting MVP honors, Iamaleava reiterated a similar narrative to what Milton told Staples after Iamaleava logged his first career start
Iamaleava ultimately ended the Citrus Bowl win with three rushing touchdowns on 15 attempts while remaining consistent through the air with a 63% completion percentage on 12-of-19 passing to go with one touchdown pass and no interceptions. He finished is true freshman season with 31 completions for 314 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s been ready to go,” Milton continued. “You know, I made sure of that every game you know, because you never know what can happen. That’s how you always have to treat it as the number two quarterback.”
For now, the Vols will enter the 2024 offseason on a high note with a 9-4 record this season with an undefeated non-conference record. As of this report, Huepel has pieced together the No. 12 recruiting class in the nation heading into the new year and has brought in a handful of talent out of the NCAA transfer portal.
One thing that has remained consistent, however, is knowing that this will be Iamaleava’s program moving forward. Based on Milton’s words, he’s expecting big things from the second-year quarterback in 2024.
The Nico Iamaleava era officially kicks off at Tennessee when the Vols host in-state foe Chattanooga inside Neyland Stadium during Week 1 on Aug. 31. They begin SEC play on the road at Oklahoma.
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