How Nico Iamaleava's Injury Impacts Tennessee vs Georgia

Jonathan Williams | Nov 12, 2024

Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava (8) during a college football game between Tennessee and Mississippi State at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Tennessee Volunteers head to Athens, Georgia on Saturday night. They will faceoff against the Georgia Bulldogs as nearly a double-digit underdog according to the latest sportsbooks. It was a line that opened at 8.5-points in favor of the Bulldogs, that's since climbed to 9.5 according to FanDuel.

Part of that line movement could be due in part to the injury Volunteers starting QB Nico Iamaleava sustained in their matchup agaisnt Mississippi State. Here's how the undisclosed injury to Iamaleava could impact the matchup between the two SEC foes.

Good News: You've Been a Running Team
There's no doubt what this Tennessee Volunteers offense is all about. This has been the Dylan Sampson show this fall. The star back leads the conference in attempts (201), yards (1,129) and TDs (20). It's been a dominating performance from this run game week after week. Nothing will change about that this weekend because Nico Iamaleava is out. Teams have done everything they can to limit this run game, especially when Tenenessee has struggled to hit explosive passes — to no avail.

Good News: You've Been a Defensive Led Team
Sure, Tennessee fans would prefer a fully healthy Nico Iamaleava in this matchup, but this defense's performance this year in a vacuum have been extremely impressive. Georgia's offense has really struggled to protect the quarterback and the football over their SEC slate, and Saturday's matchup against James Pearce and the Tennessee front six isn't a breather by any stretch of the immagination. Ole Miss's defensive line strangled the Bulldogs offense for four quarters last week, the same could be done by the Vols defensive front.

Bad News: Explosives Score On Georgia
Historically, against Georgia, you have to create chunk plays. Even against Ole Miss, they allowed just 28 points, mostly due to explosive passes flipping the field. Ole Miss was held to five field goals in the redzone. Georgia is going to make you walk the football on their best days, the teams that beat them take chunks. If Nico Iamaleava is not 100%, he still needs to be able to hit the explosive passes that present themselves in this football game.