Tennessee Vols QB Nico Iamaleava sends message to opposing defenses after huge win against NC State

Tennessee Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava didn't have a ton of "splash plays" against NC State on Saturday night.

That was mostly because NC State played a lot of soft coverage in an effort to prevent big plays.

After the Vols' 51-10 win against the Wolfpack, Iamaleava met with reporters and he made it clear that he's just fine with taking what the defense gives him, while essentially sending a message to every opposing defense that Tennessee will face the rest of the season.

"If y’all seen, they stayed in their base three-down, drop-eight, and yeah man, if you’re going to drop-eight, we’re going to keep running the ball ," said Iamaleava.

In other words, don't expect Tennessee to get frustrated if teams continue to drop eight and take away the deep passes. The Vols are just fine with running the ball and connecting on short passes underneath.

Early in the game, Iamaleava tried to forced a throw over the middle against drop coverage and it resulted in an interception. Iamaleava acknowledged after the game that he tried to force the throw.

"I think early on in the game, not forcing stuff, taking what the defense gives me," said Iamaleava after the win. "I think that’s the main thing for me.”

Interceptions are never ideal. But it sounds like Iamaleava learned a quick lesson from his mistake. That lesson will be beneficial down the road because NC State won't be the last team to play drop coverages against the Vols in an effort to take away splash plays.

And while I'm sure Tennessee badly wants to connect on those splash plays, they showed on Saturday night that they're more than willing to march down the field while taking what the defense gives them.

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