Nico Iamaleava is the only redshirt freshman to make the Maxwell Award watch list
Tennessee Football quarterback Nico Iamaleava on Monday was one of 80 college football players named to the watch list for the Maxwell Award, given annually to the most outstanding player in the country.
Iamaleava is the only redshirt freshman on the watch list, is one of 15 SEC players and one of 41 quarterbacks. Peyton Manning in 1997 is the lone Tennessee player to win the Maxwell Award.
Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced on November 12. Three finalists will be named on November 26 and the award will be given out during the ESPN College Football Awards Show on December 12. The formal presentation will be made on March 14 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
Tennessee football players report for fall camp on Tuesday, with the first practice set for Wednesday morning. The Vols start the new season on August 31 against Chattanooga in a 12:45 p.m. Eastern Time start (TV: SEC Network) at Neyland Stadium.
Josh Heupel: ‘(I’m) really excited about what he has done up until this point’
Iamaleava was a five-star prospect and the No. 1 player in the country in the On3 ratings for the 2023 recruiting class out of Long Beach, California. He was ranked No. 6 overall in the On3 Industry Ranking, coming in as the No. 3 quarterback in the class and the No. 1 player in the state of California.
“As a young guy,” Tennessee Football coach Josh Heupel said in May, “with how high profile he was in recruiting, his ability to enter into our building, be one of the guys, garner respect from the guys around him, be a magnet, draw people to him.”
In his five games as a freshman last season, Iamaleava completed 28 of 45 passes for 314 yards and two touchdowns and ran 20 times for 71 yards and had three rushing touchdowns in the Citrus Bowl in over Iowa.
Nico Iamaleava in first career start: 178 total yards, 4 total TDs
Iamaleava made his first career start in the New Year’s Day bowl game in Orlando, capping his freshman season at Tennessee with a 35-0 win the Hawkeyes.
He accounted for four total touchdowns in the win, completing 12 of 19 passes for 151 yards and one passing touchdown and running 15 times for 27 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.
Iamaleava against Iowa posted season-high numbers in PFF’s offensive grade (84.9), pass grade (85.0) and run grade (66.7).
“He’s really unique,” Heupel said, “and (I’m) really excited about what he has done up until this point.”
