Tennessee Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava met with reporters on Wednesday for the first time since last season's College Football Playoff loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes, and two things were immediately evident about the redshirt sophomore quarterback. 

For starters, Iamaleava looks like he's bulked up quite a bit since last season. 

Iamaleava was listed at 206 lbs as a true freshman in 2023 (he was listed at 195 lbs as a recruit). The California native told reporters on Wednesday that he's now at 220 lbs after finishing last season at 215 lbs. He's hoping to get to 225-230 lbs for the 2025 season. 

"I’m at 220 right now," said Iamaleava. "I want to get up to 225-230, just to be able to endure some of those hits. I think I’m at a good spot right now.”

One of Iamaleava's biggest weapons is his legs. And it's been theorized that he plays better after taking a hit or two early during games. 

"I talked to Nico's high school coach last week," said Knoxville News Sentinel reporter Adam Sparks last fall. "And he brought up an interesting thing. He said that Nico loved to run over people in the open field. And his dad and his whole family — his dad was a coach at the time — early in a game, Nico would take off running, he loved to lower his shoulder and plow over a kid. And everybody in his family would flex and chest bump and they just loved that. Now obviously he doesn't need to be doing that at this level. But they said they learned that Nico plays far better after he [would do] that one time in a game." 

Bulking up should help Iamaleava absorb those hits while staying injury free. 

The other thing that stood out about Iamaleava during his media session was how relaxed he seemed. The former five-star recruit has always been "polished" while speaking with the media — even dating back to his days in high school — but it was clear last season that he was still learning how to be the face of Tennessee football while also serving as a first-time SEC starting quarterback. 

Iamaleava was great with the media in 2024, answering each question thoughtfully while not giving away too much about Josh Heupel's program, but there's no doubt that he's much more relaxed this spring. 

During his media session on Wednesday, it felt like we saw more of Iamaleava's personality shining through in his answers. He was serious while keeping things light hearted. The west coast laid back vibes were there, but so was the ultra competitiveness that we saw on the field last season. 

“Oh yeah, Boo talk a lot…Boo always gonna talk.”

Boo Carter quickly becoming a legendary trash talker at Tennessee ? pic.twitter.com/xgCyPAdUpp

— zach ragan (@zachTNT) March 12, 2025

"I think just for me, getting out in front of the whole team. I got comfortable with speaking to my individual position groups and the offense," said Iamaleava when asked about being more of a vocal leader in 2025. "I think when it just comes to letting the whole offense and defense and the whole team hear your voice, I think that’s been the biggest thing for me. Just stepping out of my shell. I wasn’t very comfortable speaking in front of large crowds and stuff like that, but I’ve taken that next step and that’s something I’m continuing to work on.”

Last year was a bit of an odd transition year for Tennessee. The program had a lot of youth mixed with a lot of veteran players. Iamaleava was one of the younger players on the team, yet he was thrown into a role where he had to operate as a team leader alongside guys like Cooper Mays, Bru McCoy, and Omari Thomas that had been doing it for years in Knoxville. That's a tough spot for a young player, and it's why it's even more amazing that Iamaleava led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season. 

With a year of experience under his belt as a starter, plus over two years of living in Knoxville, it seems like we're about to see the best version of Iamaleava at Tennessee. 

"For me, I think it’s just me knowing the offense well and just playing fast," said Iamaleava when asked what part of his game he's most confident in. "I think just the more you get comfortable in the offense, it allows you to play free. I think that’s where I’m at right now."

Playing fast and free is the cheat code for success for elite players at any level. 

And it feels like that's what we'll be seeing from Nico in the fall. 

Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava dropped a big hint about some changes coming to Tennessee’s offense

That’s good news if it’s the case