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Nico Iamaleava injury update: Josh Heupel shares latest on Tennessee QB

IMG_7408by:Andy Backstrom11/11/24

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Nico Iamaleava
Saul Young/USA TODAY IMAGES

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel provided an update on starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava Monday, and it was a positive one two days after the redshirt freshman didn’t see the field in the second half of a 33-14 win over Mississippi State.

“He was with us today,” Heupel said of Iamaleava Monday afternoon. “He had a really good day. Feel like he’ll be in great shape for Saturday, but you guys can monitor the injury report on Wednesday and track it through the week.”

Iamaleava left Saturday’s game in the second quarter after taking a hit from Mississippi State safety Isaac Smith and, subsequently, a hard landing on his right side. Although he returned for the Volunteers’ final drive of the first half, he sat out the second half as a “precautionary measure,” according to Heupel.

Iamaleava was 8-of-13 for 174 yards and two scores through the air. He also tacked on 22 rushing yards before exiting the game. The Vols went into the half with a 20-7 lead.

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Redshirt senior Gaston Moore replaced Iamaleava and kept Tennessee on track against a Mississippi State team that’s still searching for its first SEC win of the season under first-year Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lebby.

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Moore completed 5-of-8 passes for 38 yards. The Volunteers finished the day with 240 rushing yards, including 149 from running back Dylan Sampson.

Tennessee will face a much stiffer test at Georgia this week. The Bulldogs, who fell to No. 11 in the AP Poll after a 28-10 defeat at Ole Miss, can’t afford another loss if they want a shot at the College Football Playoff.

The No. 6 Volunteers, meanwhile, are trying to avoid a second loss themselves. Having Iamaleava in the lineup would go a long way in helping Tennessee stay the course.

Iamaleava hasn’t quite exploded offensively like it looked like he might at the beginning of the season, but he’s posted an 11:4 touchdown-to-interception ratio while completing 65.2% of his passes and throwing for 1,879 yards, not to mention his 64 carries and 215 rushing yards.