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Nico Iamaleava injury update: Josh Heupel addresses Vols QB's concussion status

On3 imageby: Dan Morrison11/13/24dan_morrison96
Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee
Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee - © Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

The Tennessee Volunteers are going into one of the biggest games of the 2024 season when they travel to Athens to take on the Georgia Bulldogs. It’s a game that the Volunteers enter with questions about the status of their starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava.

After getting knocked out of the Mississippi State game with what turned out to be a concussion, it’s been unclear if he’d be able to play against Georgia. Now, while speaking to media members during the SEC teleconference, head coach Josh Heupel shared an injury update on his young signal caller in practice this week.

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“Nico has been good here in the early part of the week,” Josh Heupel said. “And at this point in the week I’ll refer everybody to the availability report that comes out later tonight. Everybody can wait with anticipation for that.”

That update from Heupel comes a day after FOX Sports’ Chris “The Bear” Fallica speculated that Iamaleava wouldn’t be able to play against Georgia this week. That went against Heupel previously sharing that he anticipating having his quarterback back soon.

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This is Iamaleava’s first season as the starting quarterback for Tennessee, having joined the program in 2023 and learning the offense for a season. He then took over as the starter ahead of last season’s bowl game and the Volunteers have a record of 9-1 since the bowl. This season, the Volunteers are 8-1 and currently sit atop the SEC standings.

In his first full-time season as the starter at Tennessee, Nico Iamaleava has completed 65.2 percent of passes for 1,879 yards and 11 touchdowns to four interceptions. He’s also rushed for 215 yards and a touchdown.

If Iamaleava is unable to play against Georgia, he will likely be replaced by Gaston Moore, who took over for him against Mississippi State. A redshirt senior, Moore has been with Heupel since 2020 when he initially went to UCF before transferring to Tennessee when Heupel left Orlando for Knoxville. In the win over Mississippi State, Moore completed five of eight passes for 38 yards.

On Wednesday night, the first injury availability report ahead of this weekend’s games will be released, giving a little more insight into the health of Nico Iamaleava. There will be several more in the meantime before toe meets leather in Athens this weekend.