The Tennessee Vols left no doubt inside Bank of America Stadium on Saturday night in Charlotte. They truly looked like one of the best teams in the country after obliterating #24 NC State 51-10.
And once again, it was in no small part to the performance of quarterback Nico Iamaleava. The redshirt freshman completed 16 of 23 attempts for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also added 65 yards on the ground with a rushing touchdown.
However, Iamaleava also finished with two interceptions in the game, the latter of which was returned for an 87-yard pick six in the second half.
It was those two throws that Heupel talked about after the game, and while he recognized the errors, he also talked about a new situation for Nico and how he responded.
"I thought, all in all, he played pretty well," Heupel said. "There's two plays that he'd like to have back. Fundamentally, just missed the throw over the middle of the football field in the first half, and at the end of the day, no matter what's happening around him, he's got to be right inside of the pocket as he's getting hit on the pass concept down there in the red zone.
"So, he played within himself. He responded extremely well to adversity. I think that's one of the things we really haven't seen from him yet. Really proud of his demeanor and being ready to come play the next play independently which is what you have to do as a quarterback ."
Iamaleava had been extremely accurate with his throws into space in his short time as a starter. However, he misfired on a throw in the second quarter intended for Bru McCoy into one of those tight windows, leading him a little bit too much and perhaps a bit high, and it went right into the hands of the NC State defender.
However, while previous Tennessee quarterbacks and teams went into a shell in the face of adversity, that didn't happen on Saturday night with Nico. After the defense held the Wolfpack to three points, Iamaleava led the Vols on consecutive scoring drives to end the first half.
Then, on the first drive of the second half, Nico culminated a 75-yard march with an easy 15-yard touchdown strike to TE Miles Kitselman for a commanding 27-3 advantage that would only continue to swell throughout the half.
It might not have been a hugely adverse situation, but it undoubtedly still was one for the young signal caller. That said, surely, there will be bigger challenges this fall. This team will trail. There will be opposing fans making it deafening. The pressure will be higher.
However, it appears that Iamaleava has the presence - and surely the arm talent and athleticism - to handle difficult situations. That's key, because the competition and ensuing challenges are about to ramp up with the Vols beginning their SEC slate later this month.
Related: Nick Saban sends stern warning to the rest of the SEC about Nico Iamaleava and the Tennessee Vols
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