Josh Heupel: Tennessee's future is bright in 2024 after Citrus Bowl win

Tennessee rang in the new year with a decisive 35-0 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes behind four touchdowns from true freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava.

The former five-star recruit is expected to take over the Vols starting QB duties for the 2024 season and beyond — and head coach Josh Heupel can’t wait to get the ball rolling on next year’s group.

“We’ve got to continue to grow as a program,” Heupel said after the bowl win. “We have an opportunity to be really special as we continue this journey here at Tennessee. The standard here is to win championships. Paying attention to the details as we go into our offseason will be extremely important — But the 2024 season looks bright.”

During his postgame speech while accepting Citrus Bowl MVP honors, Iamaleava reiterated a similar narrative. He also believes this is just the beginning of a fruitful partnership between him and the Tennessee program.

Iamaleava ended the game 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 takes over for 2023 starter Joe Milton, who opted out of the Citrus Bowl on Monday after declaring for the 2024 NFL Draft last week. According to Heupel, Milton has been one of his young quarterback’s biggest supporters since arriving on campus last offseason.

“The culture inside of the building culture in the quarterback room is to cheer and help one another. [You] band together and mentor those guys that come in behind you,” Heupel said. “We do that in every position. That’s why our young guys continue to grow the way that they have.

“I’m really proud of Joe [Milton] and how he’s handled everything since he’s been here. Nico — great performance today.”

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.

Regardless, things are looking up in Knoxville. But Heupel is making sure to celebrate this group one more time before they depart.

“Our willingness to love one another, to push one another and compete extremely hard every single day, being engaged — they do it right off the field,” he said. “I absolutely love being around this group of individuals.”