At least he started with a bang.
Tennessee redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava set a program record in the season opener against UTC, throwing for 314 yards in the first half as the Volunteers cruised 69-3. As the weeks have progressed and the competition has stiffened, the 6-foot-6, 215-pounder has struggled to direct an offense that typically operates at a frenetic pace.
Iamaleava lost a fumble and threw an interception during last Saturday night’s scoreless first half against Florida — the second straight scoreless first half for the Vols — and he will have to improve noticeably this Saturday afternoon (3:30 on ABC) if No. 11 Tennessee is to knock off No. 7 Alabama for a second consecutive occasion inside Neyland Stadium.
“I think every player and not just the quarterback has to play the next play independently and the next week independently, too,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said during Monday’s weekly news conference. “We started extremely fast last week but then had the turnover and got behind the chains a couple of times there. We had penalties in the first quarter and early in the second quarter, and those are self-inflicted wounds and things that we can control and be smarter in.
“We have a bunch of guys offensively who have played at a high level and made plays. Nico has played well. He hasn’t played his best football the last couple of weeks, so he just needs to go prepare in practice and go play the next game and the next play with an aggressive mentality. There are a lot of things that he did well in this past football game, too, so you just have to continue to grow.”
Alabama and Tennessee each enter Saturday’s showdown with 5-1 overall records and 2-1 Southeastern Conference marks.
Through the first three blowouts of UTC, North Carolina State and Kent State that transpired by the combined score of 191-13, Iamaleava tallied six touchdown passes in essentially seven quarters of action. It has been a different story in conference play, as Iamaleava’s three games against Oklahoma, Arkansas and Florida have yielded the pedestrian stat line of 45-of-75 passing for 519 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
“We just keep shooting ourselves in the foot,” Iamaleava said following Saturday night’s 23-17 overtime escape of the Gators. “There are a lot of penalties out there when we have a big play, so we’re starting first-and-20. We just haven’t been helping ourselves out with the penalties.
“I’ve got to be better, and we’ve got to operate at a higher level.”
Iamaleava will face the Crimson Tide ranked 39th nationally in passing efficiency. He was 12th through the first three games.
The Vols appeared to have regained their big-play passing potential early this season, but their longest aerial gain against Florida was 24 yards. Fortunately for Tennessee, junior running back Dylan Sampson is averaging 116.5 yards per game and remains as reliable as ever, which has helped soften the fact that Iamaleava has yet to have a breakthrough game against a league opponent.
“I don’t have concerns about him pressing,” Heupel said. “He’s prideful, and it matters to him. He wants to perform well, and not for himself but for the guys around him. Let’s go have a great week and be ready to go play really good football. When you play quarterback, it’s not going to be perfect. Everybody wants it to be, but it wasn’t for Hendon Hooker or any of the guys that we’ve had.
“Being resilient, coming back and playing with great confidence and poise, which he will, will lead you to the plays that are going to present themselves.”
Night and day
Tennessee had 21 carries for 41 yards during the first half against Florida, with the Vols producing a combined 22 rushes for 102 yards in the second half and the winning overtime drive.
The difference was even more drastic in the 19-14 loss at Arkansas, when Tennessee had 13 rushes for 15 yards at halftime and 23 carries for 161 yards in the final two quarters.
“We’re doing a really good job of taking what is there,” Vols first-year running backs coach De’Rail Sims said Tuesday in a news conference. “I think what happens in the second half is that a lot of those plus-2 runs start turning into plus-4 and plus-5. We’ve just got to do a better job of gaining those early on.
“We don’t need to do anything out of the ordinary. We just need to keep doing our job at a very high level.”
Familiarity factor
Vols first-year linebackers coach William Inge had the same role last season at Washington under Kalen DeBoer, who is in his first season at Alabama.
Could that serve as any kind of edge for the Vols?
“It’s probably a little overblown, because he’s not going to make any tackles or interceptions, right?” Tennessee defensive coordinator Tim Banks said Tuesday. “Obviously he’s familiar with Coach, but ultimately our guys have to go out there and execute. We’ve talked about it, but we don’t have any more insight than what we’ve seen on tape.
“It’s great having Coach Inge, and he’s done a tremendous job for us this season, and this game will be no different for him.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.