What Josh Heupel said about Joe Milton opting out, Nico Iamaleava starting Citrus Bowl
Nico Iamalaleava is ready for the big stage. That’s what the five-star freshman will get in his first career start on New Year’s Day, when No. 21 Tennessee faces No. 17 Iowa in the Citrus Bowl at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel all season long as Iamaleava backed up Joe Milton III.
“He’s smart, he’s competitive,” Heupel said Wednesday afternoon in Orlando after Tennessee’s first on-site bowl practice. “When he makes a mistake — and young players are always going do that — he continues to learn and grow from. It doesn’t repeat it. He’s got the ability to reset from play to play, day to day.
“Extremely talented. Everybody has known that. But I love the way that he works inside of our building, and he’s got a great demeanor about him. But he’s great at communicating with his teammates as well.”
‘Guys are excited to get an opportunity to play with Nico’
Volquest reported Wednesday morning and Milton confirmed in a statement posted on social media that he was declaring for the 2024 NFL Draft and opting out of the Citrus Bowl. That leaves Iamaleaeva, the five-star freshman, to make his first career start in the bowl game.
“Joe’s been with us throughout bowl preparation,” Heupel said, “just as he was going through his process of how he was going to handle things at the end. Guys are excited to get an opportunity to play with Nico. They appreciate Joe, obviously for everything that he’s done.
“He has been a great teammate to everybody inside of that locker room. He’s been a great teammate to Nico as well. He’s been a part of the preparation. He’ll be with us all week long and continue to help us in that way.”
Tennessee (8-4) and Iowa (10-3) on Monday are scheduled for a 1 p.m. Eastern Time kickoff on ABC.
Milton started his career at Michigan and spent three seasons with the Wolverines, throwing for 1,194 yards and five touchdowns over 14 games before transferring to Tennessee before the 2021 season.
Up Next: Tennessee vs. Iowa, Citrus Bowl, Monday, 1 p.m. ET, ABC
He initially won the starting quarterback job during Tennessee’s fall camp before the 2021 season, but injured his ankle in a home loss to Pittsburgh in September, opening the door for Hendon Hooker to take over.
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Milton remained loyal to Tennessee while Hooker took over at quarterback for the remainder of the 2021 season and starred as a Heisman Trophy contender in 2022.
But the quarterback position went back to Milton after Hooker suffered a torn ACL in November 2022. Milton last season threw for 971 yards and 10 touchdowns, appearing in nine games, and this season as the full-time starter finished with 2,813 yards, 20 touchdowns and five interceptions.
Iamaleava headlined Tennessee’s 2023 recruiting class, signing with the Vols as the No. 1 overall prospect in the country.
He arrived in Knoxville last December for bowl practices before the win over Clemson in the Orange Bowl, immediately beginning to work alongside Milton as Tennessee’s No. 2 quarterback.
“He’s continued to grow so much fundamentally, allowing him to play at this level,” Heupel said. “Continued to grow — consistency, fundamentals, decision making, being accurate with the football, in command of what we’re doing offensively.
“This will be his first opportunity to start against a really good defense, but excited to go play with him.”
