Tennessee Vols’ spring practices are in full swing, and if there’s one thing that stands out, it’s the energy. The Volunteers are back on the grind for the 7th time, fine-tuning their game for a season where expectations couldn’t be higher. There’s a different feel around Knoxville, a sense that Josh Heupel’s squad isn’t just aiming for SEC relevancy—they’re coming for the playoffs. While new faces are settling in and returning players are sharpening their edges, one storyline looms larger than the rest.

Quarterback Nico Iamaleava is stepping into his own, and Tennessee’s coaching staff might have a few tricks up their sleeve to make sure 2025 is the year he fully takes over. But there’s one problem they had to fix first.

Nico Iamaleava’s dual-threat ability has always been a weapon, but it’s one Heupel and his staff might look to unleash even more this season. Last year, the 6’6” QB1 rushed for 358 yards and three touchdowns (27.5 yards per game), a solid stat line but still lagging behind what Tennessee fans saw from Hendon Hooker during his peak (43.5 yards per game). The Volunteers aren’t just expecting Iamaleava to be better in 2025—they’re designing a scheme to make sure he is. That means more designed quarterback runs, more chances for him to punish defenses with his legs, and more stress on opposing coordinators who already have to deal with his arm. According to On3’s JD PicKell, that’s exactly the plan.

“Some intel that I got around Nico, though, in terms of how they could use him in 2025—I was told there may be a chance they do a little bit more quarterback design run game with him,” he said. That revelation ties directly into another key piece of news: Iamaleava has been hitting the weight room hard.

Tennessee fans will remember the lanky frame Nico Iamaleava arrived with as a true freshman, but those days are long gone. “He got to Tennessee, and he was like a shade under 200,” PicKell noted. Now? He’s bulked up, adding size that will help him take more hits and keep defenses honest. “During winter conditioning, you’re supposed to add some weight, so that’s a good sign,” PicKell noted.

That extra muscle? It’s a big deal, no doubt. It helps him settle in and get into the flow of the game. And listen to this: “If Tennessee can have that in the bag with how they operate offensively we know how Tennessee schemes it up like they’re going to make you cover all 53.3 when it comes to width of the field. If you have another running threat at quarterback with a light box and he can sustain that, I love that.” You see the vision, right?

If Coach Heupel is really going to lean into Nico’s running ability, the guy’s got to be built for the SEC grind, plain and simple.
The strategy totally makes sense. A quarterback who can just tuck it and go? That adds a whole new layer of unpredictability. It worked wonders with Hooker. Of course, none of this works if the offensive line can’t protect him, and that’s where Tennessee’s biggest offseason fix comes into play. The Volunteers had their moments up front in 2024, but inconsistency plagued them at times. That’s where his massive 6’6″, 290-lbs bodyguard, David Sanders, comes into the picture……

The No. 1 offensive tackle in the 2025 recruiting class, Sanders has been the talk of Tennessee’s camp since he committed. “Everybody’s been talking about him since he committed to Tennessee,” PicKell said. “And honestly, even all the way through that, having a really good spring.” The former five-star recruit isn’t just a luxury for the Volunteers—he’s a necessity.

Tennessee’s offensive line had its share of struggles last season, but locking down the right tackle spot with Sanders could be a game-changer. “The plan is, from what I can gather, or the expectation is, from what I can gather, he will eventually be the guy for them at right tackle,” PicKell revealed. It may not happen on snap one of Week 1, but at some point, Sanders is going to be a fixture in Tennessee’s trenches.

The transition won’t be immediate. Sanders has already seen the field with the third-team offense, but that’s nothing more than standard freshman protocol. His focus? Learning the system, earning his reps, and climbing the depth chart. He’s not worried about where he starts—he knows where he’s going. “I’m focused on understanding the offense and going out there and playing carefree because I feel like my best will get me moving up on the depth chart,” Sanders said.

“But I’ve got to understand the offense and understand what I’m doing so I can play with confidence.” That confidence will come, and when it does, Tennessee will have one of the best young tackles in the country anchoring their line. “And if I’m playing with confidence, I’m one of the best five we’ve got,” Sanders added. The Vols don’t just want him on the field—they need him there.

With Iamaleava growing into his role as a dual-threat nightmare and Sanders solidifying the trenches, Tennessee’s offense is shaping up to be a force.

Why Nico Iamaleava might just be Tennessee’s secret weapon?

As Nico Iamaleava continues to grow as a dual-threat nightmare for opposing defenses. On the surface, adding just 16 more rushing yards per game might not seem like a game-changer, but as J.D. PicKell pointed out, that’s two or three extra first downs, meaning more plays, more time on the field, and more chances for Tennessee’s offense to strike.

One key to unlocking Iamaleava’s full potential? Letting him run early. PicKell suggested that getting the California native involved in the run game right away helps him settle in faster—a theory backed by a fascinating nugget from Adam Sparks of the Knoxville News Sentinel.

“I talked to Nico’s high school coach last week,” Sparks said last October. “And he brought up an interesting thing. He said that Nico loved to run over people in the open field. And his dad and his whole family—his dad was a coach at the time—early in a game, Nico would take off running, he loved to lower his shoulder and plow over a kid. And everybody in his family would flex and chest bump and they just loved that.”

“And so they would call a run play, like on the first drive of every game, because once Nico took some hard contact, his throws were better, he was more comfortable, everything was better after that.” Now, nobody’s expecting Iamaleava to bulldoze defenders at the SEC level, but the takeaway is clear—he thrives after that first hit.