College football analyst makes claim about TV announcers and QB Nico Iamaleava that will leave Vols fans smiling
On3's JD PicKell made a comment this week about TV announcers and Tennessee Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava that will leave UT fans smiling at the idea of a special season in 2024.
Earlier this week, PicKell projected the top 10 quarterbacks in college football for the 2024 season.
And Iamaleava, unsurprisingly, was included in his projections, coming in at No. 8.
While explaining why Iamaleava was included in his top 10, PicKell noted that broadcasters are spending a lot of time this offseason practicing how to pronounce the Tennessee quarterback's last name because they expect to be saying it a lot this fall.
“I’m telling you a lot of broadcasters behind closed doors right now, they’re practicing that name because they know they’re gonna have to say it a lot,” said PicKell. “He has so much ability and so many weapons around him. He may have the highest ceiling of any one on this list.”
If Iamaleava lives up to the hype, then we'll be hearing his name quite a bit in 2024 from folks in the national media (by the way, it's pronounced ee-ah-MAH-LAY-ah-va).
The Nico era will officially get underway on August 31 when Tennessee opens the 2024 season against Chattanooga. Iamaleava will then lead the Vols against NC State in Charlotte on September 7, meaning that two of his first career collegiate starts will come at neutral sites (his first start came against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl to end the 2023 season).
