Vols QB Nico Iamaleava makes strong statement about College Football Playoff loss to Ohio State that has Tennessee fans fired up
It's been nearly three months since the Tennessee Vols were blown out by the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first round of the College Football Playoff and the loss still irks UT quarterback Nico Iamaleava. Tennessee, which had to play Ohio State in Columbus in the College Football Playoff, lost 42-17 to the Buckeyes in […]
It's been nearly three months since the Tennessee Vols were blown out by the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first round of the College Football Playoff and the loss still irks UT quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
Tennessee, which had to play Ohio State in Columbus in the College Football Playoff, lost 42-17 to the Buckeyes in the first round, ending the Vols' season a couple of games short of an appearance in the national championship game.
Earlier this week, Tennessee's creative team released the newest episode of "The Juice". At one point during the episode, Iamaleava admits that he thought the Vols were going to win a natty in 2024, before admitting that the loss to Ohio State is serving as motivation for Tennessee in 2025.
"Man, I expected a natty," said Iamaleava. "I'm not going to lie. Came up short. And yeah, man, it was a bummer, a hard loss to take. I think it just motivated the whole team, and all of us as a whole, to go out and get one this year."
Vols head coach Josh Heupel is on the same page as Iamaleava, noting during the episode that the standard at Tennessee is "really clear".
"The standard at Tennessee's really clear," said Heupel. "You can look back at the history of this program and understand that we're chasing greatness, we're chasing championships. The expectation is to be the best. And as excited as we've been about what we've built, we understand that there's still more out there for us. And for us to accomplish those things, it's truly winning each day. And being present in where our feet are and getting everything out of everything that we're doing."
Tennessee is clearly entering the 2025 season with the goal of winning a national championship. And the sting of the loss to Ohio State last December will serve as motivation all season long for the Volunteers.
No one knows how the 2025 season will play out, but Vols fans are undoubtedly fired up about the message coming from the program's starting quarterback and head coach.
