Comment from Josh Heupel about Nico Iamaleava should have Vols fans pretty excited
Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel made some comments this week about five-star UT signee Nico Iamaleava that should have fans in Knoxville smiling. Heupel hasn't said a lot (publicly) about Iamaleava since the five-star phenom just arrived on campus last month, but he gave On3 an interview this week where he shared some thoughts about […]
Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel made some comments this week about five-star UT signee Nico Iamaleava that should have fans in Knoxville smiling.
Heupel hasn't said a lot (publicly) about Iamaleava since the five-star phenom just arrived on campus last month, but he gave On3 an interview this week where he shared some thoughts about his future QB1.
The whole interview, which you can find here, is worth the read.
But there's one comment, specifically, that Heupel made about Nico that stood out to me.
Heupel told On3 that Nico immediately meshed with everyone in the locker room upon arriving in Knoxville last month. No ego or awkwardness — just a seamless transition.
"The other part of that is we had 16 high school kids enroll early for our bowl practice, and seeing how he connected with all those guys stood out," said Heupel. "Seeing him inside our locker room and how he immediately became a member of our football team and became somebody guys love being around said a lot about him. It has been fun watching him transition into a college football player.”
Heupel also noted that Nico has a "kid's spirit about him".
"One of the things about Nico is his spirit," noted Heupel. "He has a kid’s spirit about him. He is super likable and super engaging with people around him. And he loves having fun, he loves to crack jokes and at the same time, when he gets around a football, he is an elite competitor."
We've seen plenty of Nico on social media over the last year and one thing about him is that he's consistent in who he is. And Heupel's description of him as a fun-loving guy who is ultra-competitive is exactly what we've seen publicly from Nico.
The young five-star quarterback certainly seems like a perfect fit for the Vols' culture. When you combine his attitude with his physical skills, it's hard to imagine Tennessee landing a better quarterback to run Heupel's offense and lead the Vols.
Nico likely won't be the full-time starter until his sophomore season — that's the hope at least because it would mean that Joe Milton had a terrific final season on Rocky Top — but once the offense is his, it's going to be a lot of fun to watch on Saturdays.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
