When faced with high stakes and a ticking clock, Tennessee doesn’t just knock on the playoff door; they kick it down. With Nico Iamaleava performing at his best and head coach Josh Heupel leading the team like an experienced quarterback in crucial moments, the Vols are reaching their peak at the perfect time. Tennessee’s offensive line stands strong, allowing their star quarterback to unleash his full potential. If timing is crucial, the Vols are playing their cards like pros.

Well, it looks like Tennessee’s peak timing is perfected with their star quarterback, Nico Iamaleava’s return to full form. Not making any claims, on December 3rd, the OffTheHookSports podcast hosts thought somewhat along the same lines as they said, “Now with Iamaleava finally settled down, we’re seeing the type of throws he can make … Iamaleava made some throws on Saturday. I mean, they were impressive. That touchdown pass to Miles Kitselman in the end zone was just a thing of beauty on the 10-yard go route.” Now that’s the beauty of the game: a few weeks ago, they considered Nico the reason for the team’s downfall, but now he is the sole reason for their standout performance.

Moreover, that’s a straight fact during the Vols game against Vandy. Nico Iamaleava showed what he is capable of doing. During the game, Iamaleava completed 18 out of 26 passing attempts for 257 yards, with four touchdowns and one interception against Vandy. Plus, Nico also totaled 42 rushing yards on six attempts. This is the reason why he is getting all the attention for his remarkable gameplay, and the cherry on top moment is the SEC giving him the title of Co-Freshman of the Week.

But it’s not all his efforts that gave an edge to the Vols against Vanderbilt. Even the offense was on a roll against them, with even OfftheHookSports hosts highlighting the same, saying, “I think the offensive tackles have really settled down, and because of their settling down—well, not settled down—they’re just playing much, much better.” Well, that’s a straight fact: at least in this game, Nico was not sacked several times, and the offense really helped him make it through the game easily. But will one great performance be enough?

Will Nico Iamaleava’s gameplay add value to the team?

Nico Iamaleava had a really impressive showing, and this was probably his best performance so far in the season, but that doesn’t take away the fact that his consistency has suffered a lot since the start of the season. When Tennessee went up against the Bulldogs a few weeks back, Nico had one of his worst games of the season. During the game, he couldn’t score a single touchdown, got sacked three times, and completed only 20 out of 33 pass attempts. But then, we also can’t ignore how he played against Vandy and even Alabama.

While playing against Bama, although Nico Iamaleava has a completion rate of 51%, he at least managed to score a touchdown without getting sacked for once. even though Tennessee’s defense was good, Imaleava’s touchdown made it possible for them to secure a 24-17 win against Bama, which is not everyone’s cup of tea. So all of this is summing up to a conclusion made by analyst J.D. Pickell saying, “So again, if you get this version of Nico and you can promise me you get some deep shots, Tennessee fans, you should have every reason to believe you can, with the national championship.”

For now, the Vols are in the 8th position in CFP rankings and might have a chance to make it to the playoffs. But then, will relying totally on Nico Iamaleava be the right decision, or has Nico finally gained his consistency? Will make the most out of it? We can only wait to find out.