ESPN's Pat McAfee gives major kudos to Tennessee Vols QB Nico Iamaleava
It was a rough night all around for the Tennessee Vols on Saturday night in Columbus, Ohio. The Vols were thoroughly competitive on both sides of the ball for the majority of the 42-17 loss. However, one player who stood out in the loss was quarterback Nico Iamaleava. At least, he stood out to one […]
It was a rough night all around for the Tennessee Vols on Saturday night in Columbus, Ohio. The Vols were thoroughly competitive on both sides of the ball for the majority of the 42-17 loss.
However, one player who stood out in the loss was quarterback Nico Iamaleava. At least, he stood out to one member of the ESPN crew in particular.
McAfee gave Iamaleava some praise for his toughness throughout the game during his TV show on Monday.
"There is one player from Tennessee that we complimented throughout the evening, and we would like to maintain that here on this beautiful Monday – Nico Iamaleava is a dawg, and I have very high expectations for him going forward," McAfee said on his show on Monday. "Every time he took a massive shot, not only from an Ohio State guy but also from the turf which is much harder every single time you hit it, he bounced right back up. I think he's a Cali boy. Him coming into that, handling it that way, I think it's great for their future."
It's hard to argue with McAfee there. The numbers weren't good for Iamaleava throwing the ball. 14/31 for 104 yards. Of course, part of that has to do with the subpar play of Tennessee's wide receivers.
But this game quickly went away from any numbers in a stat column or on a scoreboard. When the Vols were struggling, Iamaleava put his head down and kept fighting for four quarters. He finished with 20 carries for 47 yards, and he took a number of violent hits throughout the evening. Each time, he popped back up and returned to the huddle.
If there's anything to take away from Saturday, it's that Tennessee's quarterback and leader won't quit and will do whatever it takes to try to win regardless of the circumstances. As such, it's not hard to understand why McAfee has lofty expectations for the young signal caller moving forward in his career in Knoxville.
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