It would be downright egregious not to give quarterback Nico Iamaleava meaningful snaps when Tennessee hosts UTSA on Saturday in Neyland Stadium.
It has become obvious that Tennessee’s offense cannot hit its highest level, as the college football world becamse accustomed to last season, with Joe Milton III at the helm. I’m not suggesting that Milton be permanently replaced. However, there’s no harm in giving Iamaleava a first-quarter look to see how the Vols’ offense performs with him under center when the score is still close.
Why now? Things get way more serious after the Vols host the Roadrunners this weekend.
Tennessee returns to SEC play after UTSA when they host South Carolina. Before Milton’s struggles, playing the Gamecocks seemed like an almost surefire win despite losing to South Carolina last season. The 2022 game was marred by a week off off-field issues by the Vols before the game, a horrendous first half followed by a season-ending injury to Hendon Hooker that destroyed any chance the Vols had to come from behind and win in Columbia. South Carolina was supposed to be a revenge game at home that the Vols would surely win. That’s before we saw Milton play three games this season as the Vols’ starter.
Common logic would be to get Iamaleava prepared to play after the South Carolina game if things continue to go wrong with Milton at the helm. After all, that’s a bye week for the Vols so there would be extra time to prepare Iamaleava for the following week when Tennessee hosts Texas A&M. However, losing to Florida changed all of that. If Milton stumbles against the Gamecocks and the Vols lose, any chance for any sort of championship will be over. That, however, doesn’t mean it’s time to throw Iamaleava to the wolves.
There is no reason to start Iamaleava ahead of Milton, who still deserves the starting job unless he continues to prove incapable of handling it. Iamaleava can play a planned two series against UTSA so Tennessee’s coaches can get a better feel for him and his ability to help the Vols sooner than later. That negates the notion that Iamaleava could be beat down by SEC defenses and never reach his potential. That is always a fair concern when playing a freshman quarterback, especially in the SEC.
Iamaleava’s physical well being would actually be secondary to Milton’s well being, which is understandable. With his eligibility clock about to need a snooze button, Milton probably won’t take kindly to Iamaleava taking some of the Vols’ pertinent snaps. And let’s be clear, Iamaleava deserves meaningful snaps. With or without a good game by Milton, the Vols should handle UTSA. Meaningless snaps in the fourth quarter won’t help Iamaleava. He needs to be in the game when it truly matters.
The next concern is how will the Vols react to a potential quarterback controversy. Well, there’s a way to cut that off at the pass as well. Iamaleava either shows something against UTSA or he doesn’t. If he doesn’t, Milton can keep rolling. If he does, then the Vols can name Iamaleava the starter at halftime, for the South Carolina game and the rest of the season. But what if that doesn’t happen?
What if Iamaleava is good, but not great? Simple, he’s either relegated to the bench once again or the Vols could take the same two-series approach moving forward and declare a closer at halftime. None of this is ideal, but neither is Milton’s play.
The concern is that Tennessee’s team might fragment and divide as it has during other quarterback quandaries in the past. While that could lead to another loss or two, Tennessee isn’t going to compete for a championship with Milton so what’s the difference between 7-5 and 8-4? If the Vols aren’t strong enough to hold together for Tennessee’s coaching staff to take a look at Iamaleava, are they strong enough to win a championship? Moreover, the Vols will have a headstart on Iamaleava’s expected ascension to stardom if he turns out to be all that he is expected to be.
Iamaleava might not be a solution to Tennessee’s offensive woes. That’s what UT’s coaches would have you believe. However, they’ve also shown they have the ultimate belief in Milton – twice. How has that worked out?
