Urban Meyer believes Nico Iamaleava will lead Tennessee to College Football Playoff: ‘This guy is unbelievable’
Urban Meyer is among the many pundits singing the praises of Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava after his Week 1 performance. It’s hard to blame the former Ohio State and Florida coach, as the redshirt freshman set a new school record for yards in a half with 314 in addition to three touchdowns.
The Vols went on to win 69-3 against Chattanooga as Iamaleava rested the entire second half with the game already well in hand. He’ll be tested against a much tougher opponent Saturday when Tennessee faces No. 24 NC State in Charlotte.
Meyer picked Tennessee to cover the spread (-7.5) against the Wolfpack because of how much he believes in Iamaleava going forward. Not only that, but he predicted the Vols to make to to the College Football Playoff.
“NC State, really good coach. Dave Doeren. Very tough place to play,” Meyer said on The Triple Option. “However, I went back and watched Tennessee. They have a quarterback that I called Matt Leinart and Brady Quinn this morning after watching this thing. His name’s Nico Iamaleava. It’s Tennessee-Chatanooga, so they were overmatched. They were so much better. 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 five-star in high school. I asked, ‘Is he a top 10 pick in the NFL Draft?’ to Brady and Matt and they said obviously, he’s got another year left. This guy is unbelievable. 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.”
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Iamaleava ranked as the No. 6 overall player in the 2023 cycle according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Additionally, On3 listed him as the No. 1 prospect in its rankings.
He has certainly lived up to that billing in the limited games we’ve seen him play throughout his college career. In addition to Saturday’s season opener, Iamaleava made his first start at Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl against Iowa as a true freshman.
He scored four total touchdowns — including three on the ground — while leading the Vols to a 35-0 victory. Iamaleava was later named MVP of the bowl game, during which he also completed 12-of-19 passes for 151 yards.
It looks like Tennessee may have a star in the young quarterback, and Meyer certainly thinks he can take them to great heights as soon as this season.