Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava needs to take a break – for an entire game.
The Vols redshirt freshman will undoubtedly play on Saturday against UTEP, but why? First, he’s recently battled a shoulder injury and concussion that almost kept him out of the Georgia game. Why put him at risk again?
Tennessee’s game plan for the Miners is to blow them out of the ground and spend half of the game perfecting what the Vols like to do with back-ups on the field and getting their starters some rest. That’s worked previously against lower-level foes like Chattanooga and Kent State. Those sorts of games also help the Vols stay fresh throughout the season. Playing a half, even against a lessor opponent, is not as taxing as playing an entire game.
There was a thinking among Tennessee’s braintrust that Iamaleava needed the experience, that starting the second half against pedestrian opponents taught him how to go through the ritual of shutting a team out and then getting ready for the third quarter. He should have that down pat by now.
Tennessee sat (or was forced to sit) Iamaleava in the second half of the Mississippi State game. The Vols still won against a lower-level opponent that just happened to be in the SEC. The second half allowed the Vols to take a good, hard look at backup Gaston Moore and he was fine. Still, he could use some more time.
What if the Vols make the College Football Playoff and need Moore for a few plays because Iamaleava gets knocked out of the game against a good opponent? Do you have any reason to think Moore can play at high level against a good team? I don’t, because I’ve never seen as much.
The Vols will play Vanderbilt in Nashville on Nov. 30. That won’t be the gimme that Tennessee fans are used to. The Commodores, like Tennessee, beat Alabama and are 6-4 and 3-3 in the SEC. That’s not the pushover kind of game Tennessee has dealt with in the past.
One could certainly argue that the Vols want to look their best against UTEP and could catch the College Football Playoff committee’s collective eyes with a big, one-sided win. There are two problems with that.
First, the Vols can hammer UTEP with Moore starting and playing the entire game against the Miners. Heck, even give Navy Shuler a chance.
The second problem with the Vols’ having to look “good” with one-sided wins to make the College Football Playoff is laughable. It has become quite obvious that the College Football Playoff committee cares more about a simple won-loss record than they do about how teams actually have played.
Based on their most recent rankings, one could question if the committee is even watching the entire games. Certainly, Tennessee-UTEP isn’t must-watch television unless you root for one of the teams. As long as the Vols win by 30, that will be fine. It won’t be a quality win, but it will be good enough.
Then, there’s Moore, in particular. He’s a senior. It’s senior day. Let him enjoy the day while Iamaleava gets ready for the playoffs – hopefully. Moore came to Tennessee from Central Florida and has patiently waited for playing time that never really came about.
Iamaleava will have his day and it might come this year in the College Football Playoff. However, there’s nothing that could happen Saturday to cement his growing legacy.
Iamaleava is obviously not going to win the Heisman Trophy and it would be disappointing for those fans that go to the game to not see their star play. Some fans would be upset by that. They shouldn’t.
Not playing Iamaleava would show some coaching insight as to how the game is being played nowadays. That’s to get ready for the playoffs by just winning. Who cares about looking great? Not that questionionable College Football Playoff selection committee that we’ve all been talking about.
