Paul Finebaum makes puzzling statement about Tennessee football that will leave Vols fans wondering if he even watches UT football
SEC Network host Paul Finebaum told On3 that he thinks the Tennessee Vols are in for a "transitional year" in 2025. In his comments to On3, Finebaum also suggested that Tennessee relied too much on quarterback Nico Iamaleava last season. "I still believe he’s (Josh Heupel) a very bright coach, I think it was just […]
SEC Network host Paul Finebaum told On3 that he thinks the Tennessee Vols are in for a "transitional year" in 2025.
In his comments to On3, Finebaum also suggested that Tennessee relied too much on quarterback Nico Iamaleava last season.
"I still believe he’s (Josh Heupel) a very bright coach, I think it was just leaning too heavily on Nico Iamaleava this year," said Finebaum.
I'm not sure what Finebaum is getting at with that comment. Does he think the Vols should've leaned on Iamaleava less? That certainly wouldn't make any sense.
Iamaleava, who was in his first season as a collegiate starter in 2024, attempted 334 passes while carrying the ball 109 times in 13 starts last season.
That's in line with what we've seen from Josh Heupel's offenses over his first four seasons on Rocky Top.
In 2021, Joe Milton and Hendon Hooker combined for 364 pass attempts and 194 rushing attempts.
The following season, Hooker attempted 329 passes and carried the ball 104 times in 11 games (Milton had 82 pass attempts and 18 carries that season).
In 2023, Milton attempted 354 passes and carried the ball 78 times in 12 games (Iamaleava started the Vols' win against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl).
Tennessee "leaned on" Iamaleava in 2024 just as much (if not less) as they leaned on Hooker and Milton in previous years.
If the Vols "leaned on" anyone last season, it was running back Dylan Sampson, who set program records for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a season.
Finebaum, by the way, didn't really provide any evidence as to why he believes Tennessee is in for a transitional year. And his comments about Iamaleava don't make a bit of sense.
Regardless of what Finebaum thinks of the Vols in 2025, I can guarantee you that Heupel, his coaches, and his players aren't viewing this upcoming season as a "transitional year". They intend to bring a national championship trophy back to Knoxville.
Whether or not they achieve that goal is anyone's guess. We'll see in 10ish months how the season played out for the Vols. That's the beauty of competition — nothing that's said in the offseason has any impact on what will actually happen.
