Freshman Files: Why Nico Iamaleava Is Tennessee's Crown Jewel

Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Nico Iamaleava carries a ton of pressure into his college career. How will the No. 1 prospect in America respond to the expectations?

The Tennessee Volunteers don't often sign top-three players. In fact, you must go back to 2015 for the last time the Vols got a signature on a letter of intent from a top-three prospect, defensive tackle Kahlil McKenzie. Head coach Josh Heupel arrived at Tennessee in 2021 determined to change the narrative around Tennessee, and his first priority was to land an elite quarterback. He quickly landed on California native Nico Iamaleava, a decision that may come to define his early tenure.

Iamaleava is one of the most tantalizing quarterback prospects we've had come through the high school ranks in the past decade. He's got all the traits in the world: a 6-6 frame with long arms, a silky release, and some of the best arm talent you'll see. He made a name for himself early in his high school career on the 7-on-7 circuit, tossing darts between Power-5 defenders in colorful pajama pants. He gained a lot of notoriety after his sophomore season of high school. The state of California shortened that year to five games in response to the Covid-19 pandemic the year prior. Nico excelled in those opportunities, limited as they were, and became a national name.

He logged four starts for Downey High School that season and threw for 17 touchdowns against just one interception. Iamaleava threw 4+ touchdowns in three of his four outings, including six touchdown passes in the season opener. He held 11 offers heading into that sophomore season, but that list grew to 22 offers before his junior season. Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, USC, and other major programs jumped into his recruitment after that year, with the Vols offering him in May 2021. They got him on campus for the Ole Miss game that October, and he enjoyed Knoxville so much that he returned six weeks later for the Vanderbilt game. Iamaleava visited Miami and Oregon in January 2022 before taking two months off from recruiting. He traveled to Tennessee for his third unofficial visit in March, and after returning home, he decided to commit to Tennessee. After he made things official on March 21, 2022, Iamaleava only made two more visits to Hawaii and TCU before shutting his recruitment down.

Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava during Orange Bowl practices on December 17, 2022

Beating Alabama last season was the No. 1 sign that Heupel had this squad back on the road to prominence. Signing Iamaleava was signal No. 2. He's that talented of a prospect - it's hard to imagine a world where things don't work out for Iamaleava. He's got NFL first-round draft pick written all over him, but the Vols need him to put things together in college. He doesn't have much starting experience from high school - the exact number fluctuates depending on your source, but the number is below 15 games.

The raw talent is evident. Iamaleava made a few throws at the spring game, where it felt like he was the only player on the field who could have made the throw. That's while Joe Milton III was on the field, Tennessee's starter who also has first-round traits. There are moments where Iamaleava flashes the ability to play with tempo, controls his team presnap, and makes a throw worthy of living on a highlight reel for years. There are also moments where he can hold the football too long, elongate his motion, or not get the ball out fast enough.

Iamaleava's journey to success is largely dependent on his willpower. There's no reason he can't be successful at a high clip if he puts his head into preparation, development, and his day-by-day process. Heupel took his opportunity earlier this offseason to give Iamaleava his flowers, saying that Nico walks around with a mature nature even though he has the weight of a community resting on him. He's the centerpiece of Heupel's first full era that he recruited from start to finish, and the Vols are banking on him being all sorts of special.

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