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Urban Meyer raves about Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava: ‘This guy is a monster’
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Urban Meyer was extremely impressed with what he saw from Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava in the Vols’ season-opener.
Iamaleava threw for 314 yards and 3 touchdowns in UT’s dominant win over Chattanooga while also showcasing his mobility in the backfield. It’s still early, but Iamaleava seems to be living up to the hype he received coming out of high school as a 5-star prospect.
Meyer spoke about Iamaleava’s skillset on the Triple Option podcast with Rob Stone and Mark Ingram this week.
“It’s Tennessee-Chattanooga so they were overmatched, the opponent they played, they were so much better,” Meyer said. “But this guy, as far as a body type, to stand there athletically and throw the ball. The ball came out like a missile. He was a 5-star product coming out of high school. I asked this question, ‘is he a top-10 pick in the NFL Draft?’ to Brady and Matt. Obviously, he’s got another year left. This guy is unbelievable, Mark. I know they had Joe Milton last year but this guy is a monster.
“Because of him, I’m putting them to cover the spread and I think they’ll be a Playoff team because of this guy … As far as a ball coming out of a guy’s hand, Mark, it’s beautiful. I’m gonna show it on [Big Noon Kickoff]. It’s unbelievable.”
That’s very high praise coming from Meyer, who coaches more than his fair share of elite quarterbacks during his time as a college head coach. Josh Heupel appears to have done a great job of developing Iamaleava during his first couple years with the program.
As good as Tennessee looked in Week 1, the Vols are still underdogs to make the College Football Playoff this year. FanDuel currently as Tennessee to make the Playoff priced at +185.
Iamaleava and the Vols will have a much greater challenge in Week 2 when they take on NC State.
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Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
