Nico Iamaleava has done 'an unbelievable job' in offseason, Josh Heupel says

The Nico Iamaleava era in Knoxville is officially underway this spring.

Iamaleava received the first start of his career against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl, defeating the Hawkeyes 35-0 having scored three rushing touchdowns on 15 attempts while going 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.

That was just the start. Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel previewed what fans should expect out of their new QB1 this coming fall.

“He’s got a great command, poise,” Heupel told ESPN’s Greg McElroy. “If anything, he slowed down during the course of the game, maybe even during the course of practice which you and I both know is typically not the case for a young quarterback. To handle that adversity good play, bad play, the right way. We knew he was was athletic and had the ability to escape and make plays with his feet.

“He’s done an unbelievable job here during the course of this offseason, been a pro in the building, continuing to grow so much just in understanding defenses, knowing why we’re doing the things that we’re doing and where to place his eyes and get himself in a great fundamental position to read things out and then deliver the football. He continues to grow in his command inside of our building.”

Heupel said that Iamaleava takes wide receivers to the side to get extra reps and talks to his offensive line more and, as his head coach puts it, is starting to embrace the leadership role as he continues to gain first-team experience nearing the end of Tennessee’s spring practice schedule.

“Inevitably, when you have the ball in your hands, you need to have that [leadership quality] for the locker room and in the football team to operate the right way,” Heupel continued. “That’s going to be a growth for him during the course of this year — and during his career. You and I both know that you don’t just step into that as a young guy, but he’s done a really nice job.”

After the spring game set for April 13, the next chance Vol fans will be able to see the new Tennessee quarterback in action 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 on Sept. 21.