Josh Heupel Discusses What He Has Seen From Nico Iamaleava in Bowl Practices

Tennessee welcomed 29 members in to its ranks yesterday, including elite California signal-caller Nico Iamaleava. The long-time commitment signed his National

Tennessee welcomed 29 members in to its ranks yesterday, including elite California signal-caller Nico Iamaleava. 

The long-time commitment signed his National Letter of Intent yesterday morning, and yesterday afternoon, after Tennessee concluded practice, Josh Heupel discussed what he has seen from Iamaleava, who arrived to practice last week. 

"A lot of things," Heupel said of what he has seen from the prized signal-caller. "Got a chance to see him in person and on tape, too. He's athletic, and I say that meaning that he understands his body. He can self-correct and get himself in the position as he's learned what it should feel like in the pocket in a few short days. He can already start to correct himself, he understands when something happens, why it's happening. That's only going to continue to heighten. Obviously, the raw skills are there. Arm talent and extremely athletic and explosive inside of the pocket. Can make plays with his feet. In a short amount of time, we've been able to see those things already."

However, Heupel made it clear during the early stages of his press conference, that Iamaleava, along with the other incoming Freshmen are here to grow and get a feel for the day-to-day during this time.

"For everybody that's here, I'm proud of the class that we put together. For the guys that are here currently, Nico included, you're not going to walk into the backend of the season, learn an entire playbook and know what to do. You get a chance to sit in meetings. You get a chance to go out there and do a lot of individual work. You get a chance to compete in some 1-on-1 situations. As much as anything, I think they learn the tempo of the game. They learn what it feels like to be a college athlete. I think it creates urgency in the way they prepare when they get back to campus. Even during the down time, for us, our guys don't arrive until later in January. There's a lot of time between now and then. I think it speaks to the urgency that they feel they have to have. It changes the way they approach the weight room. It changes the way they prepare, their understanding of our playbook, some of the fundamentals and technique that they're going to need to go compete at a really high level during spring ball. I just got done talking to those guys after practice and I'm really proud for the guys who have been here already and gotten a couple of bowl practices underneath their belt."

Still, the early enrollees are certainly benefiting from this opportunity and are growing from it. 

"First of all, you notice their athleticism, their speed, their length and their size, particularly for the guys up front. In this class, we were able to go get guys who we think can help compete, grow and have an opportunity to play. They have to earn it, learn it and take it, but help us take a step. In particular, (help us) defensively. Two years ago, we were hit heavy in the portal. For us, continuing to recruit that defensive side of the ball to add the depth that we need, along with the athleticism that we want, that's extremely important. For everybody that's here, I think it helps create urgency in preparing for spring ball. Those guys have had an opportunity to spend time with our players. Our players that are inside of our building have been awesome with them by showing them what it means to be a Tennessee football player and what the culture is inside the building. They've had an opportunity to hang out with them outside of this building. We've done some team building stuff and I think it's been a great experience for all of them."