COLUMBUS, Ohio — Nico Iamaleava threw his hands up in frustration as Chris Brazzell was unable to work back to a slightly under thrown fourth down pass early in the fourth quarter of Tennessee’s 42-17 season-ending loss against Ohio State on Saturday night.
A pass that wasn’t on the money and a receiver that was unable to make a play on a catchable pass. It was a microcosm of the failures in Tennessee’s passing game over each of the last two seasons. But the results have remained the same. Frustration and confusion. Confusion on how a Josh Heupel offense that gave every defense besides Georgia fits for two years could be this lifeless for a second straight season.
And make no bones about it. Tennessee’s passing attack has been below average for two straight seasons.
The Vols’ 221 passing yards per game ranks 11th in the SEC. Nico Iamaleava threw for 314 yards in the season opener against Chattanooga. He wouldn’t throw for over 300 yards again the rest of the season. In Tennessee’s three losses, Iamaleava averaged 143 passing yards and didn’t eclipse 170 yards in a single game.
Perhaps the most jarring thing is the lack of explosive plays in the passing game. A Heupel offense that used to seemingly guarantee multiple 30-plus yard passing touchdowns every game has lost its ability to create chunk plays down the field. That issue was most glaring in those three losses. Tennessee totaled two passes over 20 yards in those three games.
“It’s never one thing,” Tennessee offensive coordinator Joey Halzle said of the explosive passing game issues. “It’s a lot of situations of everyone taking a turn, like where you get somebody open and then maybe you don’t win up front and then you’re dominating up front, and then you dominate up front and you get open and you miss the throw.”
There’s plenty of blame to go around for Tennessee’s passing woes. The Vols’ offensive line was shaky in pass protection at best this season and was downright dreadful against top-notch pass rushes. Tennessee’s receivers were average. Dont’e Thornton was the only difference maker and he was unable to stay healthy. The group had bad drops throughout the season in big moments.
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It’s easier to excuse some of Iamaleava’s short comings. He was far from perfect this season but was a redshirt freshman starter, got better as the year progressed and his supporting cast did little to help him.
The reality is simple. Tennessee’s passing attack is somewhere between broken and in need of a major overhaul. Finding the solution is much more difficult.
Not even Heupel himself has all the answers but there is one notable change over the last two years that is worth exploring. Tennessee doesn’t play with tempo anymore, and the Vols don’t have a complicated route tree. Heupel’s offense is built on wide splits that create one-on-ones and a tempo that puts opponents on their heels.
With the tempo gone and a mediocre receiver core incapable of winning one-on-ones against top competition, Tennessee’s struggles passing the football make more sense.
Entering 2025, there’s plenty of reason to believe Iamaleava will be improved and there’s little reason to think the offensive line will be improved. Tennessee needs to upgrade its talent at receiver and Heupel needs to truthfully analyze his scheme.
There are multiple things separating Tennessee and Ohio State, but the Vols must get their passing attack back to be more competitive against the sport’s best.
