Booger McFarland gushes over Nico Iamaleava performance, tabs Tennessee as College Football Playoff 'dark horse'

As plenty of new quarterbacks took their first snaps, one of the most notable performances was on Rocky Top. It’s officially Nico Iamaleava’s show at Tennessee, and on Saturday, he showed why he’s ready to take over Josh Heupel’s offense.

Iamaleava completed 22 of 28 passes for 314 yards and three touchdowns in the first half alone as the Vols cruised to a 69-3 victory over Chattanooga. That set a program record for most yards in a half, and it captured the attention of Booger McFarland.

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McFarland said Iamaleava was the big winner of Week 1. In the process, he also declared the Vols a “dark horse” for the College Football Playoff this season.

“The best quarterback performance I saw to this point was Nico,” McFarland said ahead of the Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M game Saturday night. “He’s 6-foot-6, 230 pounds. They’ve been raving about him in Knoxville and we finally got an opportunity to see it. Look out. Dark horse pick for the Playoff in the SEC? The Volunteers.”

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Nico Iamaleava ‘didn’t know’ he set a Tennessee record

Saturday marked Iamaleava’s second career start after he got the first snaps in the bowl game last year against Iowa. However, it was his first regular-season start, and he rose to the occasion in a big way with a record-setting performance. In fact, he didn’t even realize he made history.

“I didn’t know. A couple of my teammates were telling me and then the interview I had at the end of the game was really when I found out,” Iamaleava said after the game. “It’s a cool, surreal moment. I didn’t even know about it, but it felt good to go out there and operate with my teammates.”

The key to the big day, Iamaleava said, was strong practices. That allowed him to establish a connection with his receivers and, as a result, put together a big day against Chattanooga.

“It just starts with our preparation,” Iamaleava said. “Practice, we’re getting a lot of those same looks. We got out here in the game and we’re just having fun. I think it all clicked from practice and carrying that over to the game.”

Chandler Vessels contributed to this report.