Despite very little on-field experience together before the 2024 season, Tennessee’s receivers looked right in sync with their second-year quarterback in Saturday’s 69-3 win over Chattanooga to start the season.
Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava cruised to 314 passing yards and three touchdowns in just two quarters of action on Saturday as he picked apart the Mocs’ defense with his revamped roster of pass-catchers.
Bru McCoy led Tennessee in receptions (6) while Dont’e Thornton led the Vols in both receiving yards (105) and receiving touchdowns (2), as both players made their return from injury during the 2023 season. Tennessee’s offseason portal addition Chris Brazzell also had himself a nice debut with five receptions for 59 yards, including a catch over the middle of the field that had YouTube reactors working overtime.
There was clear chemistry between the Vols’ quarterback and his receivers on Saturday. Tennessee wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope confirmed a key thought while speaking to the media on Tuesday – Tennessee’s receivers want to play for Iamaleava.
“I’ll tell you this, I played quarterback in high school and college and I played receiver at a high level for a long time,” Pope said. “I’ve seen a handful of guys that receivers want to go play for. And you can see it, you can sense it. They love playing for their guy, like, absolutely love playing for him. It’s infectious in practice, it’s obviously easy in the game because the crowd’s there and there’s adrenaline. But they absolutely love playing for their guy.”
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Tennessee’s coaching staff and players planted the seeds throughout the fall, but it was clear to see just how in sync the passing game was. While Tennessee did play FCS opponent Chattanooga last Saturday, the Vols’ offense operated as efficiently as you could have asked for – which isn’t always a guarantee these days.
Iamaleava set Tennessee’s all-time single-half passing record with 314 yards on Saturday, and while the quarterback rightfully deserves the spotlight for that accomplishment, the Vols’ pass catchers consistently gave their quarterback impressive plays.
The first offensive play of the game was Brazzell making a falling catch against the sideline while staying in bounds. Ethan Davis gave Iamaleava a Neyland statue-sized target in the endzone for his first touchdown. McCoy and Thornton both made contested catches on post routes down the field. Iamaleava made impressive throws in all four plays, but each also demonstrated the overall offensive firepower Tennessee goes into the 2024 season with.
One of the aspects that was talked about often during the spring was Iamaleava’s growth in vocal leadership as the rising starter on the team. That same question was hardly discussed in the fall, though, as the understanding was simply that Iamaleava had taken over that leadership role.
Pope confirmed that on Tuesday.
“And as talented as he’s, he’s an even better teammate and a better leader,” Pope said of Iamaleava after game one. “So that’s a testament to him and the growth that he’s shown since coming on the campus. It makes our group, our camaraderie, it makes the chemistry that much better when those guys love each other and they play hard for one another. So they love playing for Eight Ball (Iamaleava).”
Tennessee will see their first real test this Saturday against the defense of No. 24 NC State. But without getting too bullish after an FCS win, it does seem like Tennessee has some special offensive pieces with special camaraderie this season.
