Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava must elevate his play in 2025 after inconsistent performances in his first season as starter, according to ESPN.
The former five-star recruit, who reportedly signed an $8 million NIL deal with Tennessee’s collective before taking a snap, finished with a 10-3 record but struggled down the stretch last season.
Iamaleava’s performance fell between his predecessors Joe Milton III and Hendon Hooker, helping the Volunteers reach the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff.
Tennessee’s season ended with a first-round playoff loss to eventual national champion Ohio State.
In that defeat, Iamaleava completed just 45.2% of his passes for 104 yards with no touchdowns. The performance highlighted his late-season difficulties that caught the attention of national analysts.
ESPN’s Chris Low identified Iamaleava as the quarterback with the most to prove in 2025, citing his inconsistency in the passing game.
Tennessee’s Nico Iamaleava has elite arm talent and showed some real toughness last season. Now, in his third season on campus and pulling in a reported $8 million in NIL money, it’s time for him to go from being solid to being a difference-maker in a Tennessee offense that desperately needs more pop in its downfield passing game.
Iamaleava is 11-3 as a starter going back to the bowl game at the end of his freshman season and has protected the football well, but he passed for more than 200 yards only twice in his nine games last season against SEC foes and then Ohio State in the playoff. The Vols will need more from him next season if they’re going to make a return trip to the playoff.
– Chris Low, ESPN
In Tennessee’s three losses, Iamaleava produced just two total touchdowns – none passing.
He failed to throw a touchdown pass in four games last season.
Coach Josh Heupel’s offense relies on a strong running game, but its most effective version features a quarterback who can throw downfield effectively – as Hooker demonstrated when leading the No. 1 offense in the nation in 2022.
Iamaleava faces additional challenges heading into 2025. The Volunteers are losing running back Dylan Sampson and their top three receivers – Bru McCoy, Squirrel White, and Dont’e Thornton Jr.
With a rebuilt supporting cast and heightened expectations, Iamaleava’s third season at Tennessee could determine the program’s trajectory in the expanded SEC.
