3 reasons why Nico Iamaleava was always a better fit than Arch Manning for the Tennessee Vols
2023 five-star quarterback Arach Manning announced his commitment to the Texas Longhorns on Thursday. Manning is the nephew of Tennessee Vols legend Peyton Manning. The Vols, however, were never a factor in Arch's recruitment. Tennessee decided early on to focus on five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava instead of Manning. And that was absolutely the right choice. […]
2023 five-star quarterback Arach Manning announced his commitment to the Texas Longhorns on Thursday.
Manning is the nephew of Tennessee Vols legend Peyton Manning. The Vols, however, were never a factor in Arch's recruitment.
Tennessee decided early on to focus on five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava instead of Manning.
And that was absolutely the right choice. Iamaleava, who committed to the Vols in late March, was always a better fit for Tennessee than Arch. And there are three specific reasons why that's the case.
1. Nico is a better fit in Josh Heupel's offense
One reason why Tennessee and Arch were never compatible is because of Josh Heupel's offense. Arch preferred more of a pro-style system and what Heupel runs is closer to the old Baylor veer and shoot offense mixed with some air raid concepts. That style of offense has crept its way into the NFL in recent years thanks to players like Patrick Mahomes and coaches like Kliff Kingsbury. Arch, however, has been deadset on a particular type of offense.
Iamaleava is a more physically gifted player who can use his legs to keep defenses honest or his strong arm to hit receivers in stride that Heupel schemes open. Arch is a bit more athletic than his uncle Peyton, but he's not quite at Nico's level.
The ability to make all the vertical throws makes Iamaleava a perfect fit for the Vols.
2. The media attention surrounding Nico
Stay with me here. I know there's been an insane amount of media attention surrounding Manning's recruitment. But now that he's committed, that attention will mostly die down. That's because Manning isn't a player that likes the spotlight. He doesn't do many interviews and he's not plastered all over social media. Nico, on the other hand, has no problem being visible — which is exactly what the Vols need right now as they attempt to rebuild the program. Tennessee needs a player like Nico out there getting attention and changing the perception of the program. UT needs him snapping photos with fans. The more attention Nico gets, the better for the Vols. Arch would've obviously received a lot of attention at Tennessee as well, but his reluctance to be in the public eye wouldn't have done the Vols any favors in the PR department.
3. Expectations
If Arch would've landed at Tennessee, the expectations would've been out of this world. Every move he made would've been compared to Peyton. And there's no way Arch could've lived up to the expectations placed on him unless he won a national championship at Tennessee. Winning a national championship at the collegiate level is one of the toughest things to do in sports. And while I know Vols fans won't want to hear this, chances are high that Arch would not have won a natty in Knoxville (I seriously doubt he wins one at Texas, either). The amount of pressure that Arch would've been facing at Tennessee would've been unbearable for both sides.
The Vols were smart to identify their guy early and lock him down. Arch might have a familiar last name, but Nico is the 2023 quarterback best suited to bring success to Rocky Top.
Featured image via Rivals.com
