National media outlet names the biggest question facing the Tennessee Vols in 2025
Earlier this week, 247Sports revealed a "burning question" that each top 25 college football team will have to answer in 2025. For the Tennessee Vols, which are ranked No. 9 in 247Sports' early preseason top 25 rankings, that question is whether quarterback Nico Iamaleava can handle an even bigger role in 2025. From 247Sports: Can […]
Earlier this week, 247Sports revealed a "burning question" that each top 25 college football team will have to answer in 2025.
For the Tennessee Vols, which are ranked No. 9 in 247Sports' early preseason top 25 rankings, that question is whether quarterback Nico Iamaleava can handle an even bigger role in 2025.
From 247Sports: Can Nico Iamaleava handle an even bigger role? — With Dylan Sampson off to the NFL, the Vols are almost certain to pass at a much higher rate than in 2024. In order for that to work, Iamaleava needs to be better than he was in his first year as the starter.
The expectation is that Iamaleava will take a big step forward in his development in 2025, though I don't necessarily think he'll be asked to throw the ball significantly more than he did in 2024. While it's true that running back Dylan Sampson is moving on to the NFL, that doesn't mean that Josh Heupel is going to suddenly move away from running the ball.
The run game has always been a big part of Heupel's approach. And the main reason that Tennessee ran the ball more in 2024 than in previous seasons wasn't just because of Sampson's elite abilities, it was also because of the way defenses were playing against the Volunteers (trying to limit explosive plays in the pass game).
I think a bigger question that Tennessee has to answer in 2025 is how do they replace center Cooper Mays?
Mays was the Vols' starting center for the first four seasons of the Heupel era. Now that Mays is gone (his eligibility was exhausted), who steps into that role?
Notre Dame transfer offensive lineman Sam Pendleton is one option. Rising redshirt freshman William Satterwhite, a former four-star recruit from Ohio, is another option. That's a battle that will start to play out this spring. Whoever wins that battle, though, has some big shoes to fill. And if that Vols can't get the center position right, it will certainly hamper Iamaleava's continued development.
