Tennessee's Josh Heupel Says Veteran Presence is Important for Nico Iamaleava

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said a veteran presence is important for quarterback Nico Iamaleava this season.

Tennessee’s Nico Iamaleava (8)during Tennessee football’s first fall practice, in Knoxville, Tenn., Wednesday, July 31, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said a veteran presence is important for quarterback Nico Iamaleava this season.

Week one of college football has finally arrived and the Tennessee Volunteers will get their season kicked off this week against Chattanooga. This is a highly anticipated season for the Volunteers as quarterback Nico Iamaleava will be the program's full-time starter for the first time in his career. Head coach Josh Heupel spoke to the media on Monday to preview week one and he spoke of what is needed out of his team to help his quarterback.

"Guys around him need to play at a high level," Heupel said. "That can be the offensive line in pass protection, the run game, skill guys being where they need to be. It all ties in together."

The Volunteers have a lot of experienced college players on their roster and they will need to lean on them this season for Iamaleava to reach his full potential in year one as the starter. The former five-star looked impressive in his start against Iowa in the Citrus bowl, and the expectation is that he will only build off of that and improve upon that this season.

The Vols open the season with UT-Chattanooga, and as you'd imagine, they are MASSIVE favorites in Vegas. According to FanDuel, the line is currently set at Tennessee (-38.5) points with a total set at 56.5 points. Initially, the line was set at 41.5 points.

Draftkings is onboard with Fan Duel and has the game spread also set at 38.5 points. However, they have the over/under set 57 points, so both sites are expecting a lot of points to be scored on Saturday and the majority of them to be in favor of the Volunteers.

ODDS DISCLAIMER: Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Other Tennessee News:

• Tony Vitello Turnaround Nothing Short of Brilliant for Tennessee Baseball
• Jaylen Williams Cuts Recruitment to Four Schools
• Tennessee Vols Football Could Make Playoff According to CFB Data Model

Join the Community:

• Follow Evan Crowell on Twitter: @EvanVCrowell
  
• Follow Blake Schowalter on Twitter: @BlakeSchowalte1
  

You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top right-hand corner of the page. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook @VolunteerCountry & follow us on Twitter at @VCountryFN.