It’s his show now.
Hendon Hooker and now Joe Milton are headed to the professional level, meaning the next man is up in the pipeline — and he enters the situation with quite a bit of hype. Former five-star, No. 1 overall player Nico Iamaleava is the man under center now for the Volunteers, looking to build off of a strong start to his career back in January.
Iamaleava lit up the Iowa Hawkeyes, helping to power Tennessee to a 35-0 bowl victory. He’s now going through his first spring session as the starter, quickly transitioning into a leadership role within the program.
Iamaleava now sits atop the depth chart for Tennessee, followed by veteran Gaston Moore and true freshman Jake Merklinger. We’ve seen flashes of Iamaleava so far, but we didn’t get to see much downfield action against the Hawkeyes. That’s something we’ll want to see next month in the Orange and White game.
On Monday, Iamaleava spoke to the media for the first time this spring.
On if there is a difference in camp coming in as a starter…
“Not too much. Even last year, I approached every day like I was the starter. I think Joe (Milton III) did a great job of just helping me visualize what that looks like, and I have carried it over to this year.”
On working on his leadership as the starting quarterback…
“(I am) still being myself. I have been trying to work on being more vocal for the guys, speaking up when I need to. I think just being myself out there, hanging out with the guys and making sure we are getting our business done. I’ve grown more in the vocal aspect of it, just being louder for the guys is what I’ve really been trying to work on.”
On how he has evolved physically since arriving at Tennessee…
“I think I’ve gotten to 215 (pounds) over the spring, and really have been trying to maintain that and stay at that weight. I think it has been a huge difference in the way I’ve been eating and taking care of my nutrition. Everyday habits have grown more and more for me as the years went on, so just being consistent with that.”
On resetting after a successful outing at the Citrus Bowl and the buzz his performance generated…
“After that game, I probably took a week off and then was right back to work. Trying not to pay too much attention to things like that. I know what I came here to do, and it’s my job to go get that done.”