Former Oklahoma coach: Nico Iamaleava is a future Heisman winner, possible No. 1 pick
Cale Gundy has watched the film. The former longtime Oklahoma assistant coach has studied Tennessee ahead of Saturday night’s game. And he knows what makes the Vols go.
“I know they are really good,” Gundy said of the Vols on Thursday during an appearance on ‘Josh & Swain’ on 99.1-FM The Sports Animal in Knoxville. “I mean, I love the quarterback.”
That quarterback, obviously, is redshirt freshman Nico Iamaleava, who will make his first career road start when No. 6 Tennessee (3-0) plays at No. 15 Oklahoma (3-0) on Saturday night (7:30 Eastern Time, ABC).
“It’ll be a great matchup,” Gundy said. “There’s going to be success on both sides.”
‘I think (Nico Iamaleava) could potentially be the first player taken in the NFL Draft’
Gundy played quarterback at Oklahoma in the early ‘90s, then spent 23 years at OU as an assistant coach, working first with running back and later at wide receiver while spending five years as the Sooners’ offensive coordinator.
He looked a couple years down the road when discussing Iamaleava on Thursday.
“I think the quarterback is a Heisman Trophy winner,” Gundy said. “If he stays healthy, before he leaves college, I think he could potentially be the first player taken in the (NFL) Draft someday, whenever he decides to leave college.
“I think he is very, very talented. He’s in a tremendous system.”
Through three games as the full-time starter in Josh Heupel’s system, Iamaleava has completed 48 of 67 passes (.716) for 698 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions. He’s rushed 17 times for 102 yards and has two rushing touchdowns.
Iamaleava has yet to play a full four-quarter game. He checked out at halftime of the 69-3 win over Chattanooga in the season opener, in the fourth quarter of the 51-10 win over North Carolina State in Charlotte two weeks ago and in the second quarter last week, after building a 58-0 lead over Kent State on the way to a 71-0 win.
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No. 6 Tennessee at No. 15 Oklahoma, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC
That should change Saturday night, when Heupel makes his long-awaited return to Oklahoma for the toughest test of Iamaleava’s career to date. And the biggest game Gundy can remember in Norman.
“I’ve had some serious discussions with people,” Gundy said, “I coached here for 23 years, from ’99 to ’22, and I had the opportunity to be a part of a lot of big games. I think this is as big a game as we’ve had potentially, for certain reasons, around here.
“Ever since OU has been invited and gone to the SEC, there’s just been a little hesitance, a lot of talk, is Oklahoma ready to play in the SEC? Can they play in the SEC? Are they good enough?”
It just so happens that Tennessee’s high-powered offense are the first test, with Heupel going back to Oklahoma for the first time since being fired as offensive coordinator by Bob Stoops after the 2014 season.
“(Oklahoma knows) they got their hands full,” Gundy said. “Excited to have Josh back here. These fans will welcome him. He’s the last quarterback here to win a national championship. But when that game starts, Josh is going to want to score a hundred points and the OU fans are going to want to beat the crap out of Tennessee.”
