Tennessee will have its starting quarterback on Saturday night against Georgia.
According to multiple reports, Nico Iamaleava has been cleared from concussion protocol and will start for the No. 7 Volunteers in Athens vs. the No. 12 Bulldogs. Iamaleava missed the second half of the Vols’ win over Mississippi State in Week 11.
On Monday, Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said that Iamaleava would be good to go for the weekend. But he needed to get through concussion protocol, a development that became public on Tuesday.
Iamaleava is 144-of-221 passing for 1,879 yards and has thrown for 11 TDs to four interceptions this season. He began the season as a Heisman favorite, though he’s fallen from that race as Tennessee’s offense has struggled to find explosive plays during SEC play.
Had Iamaleava missed Saturday’s game, Gaston Moore would have been in line to make his first start. Moore replaced Iamaleava in the second half against Mississippi State and was 5-of-8 passing for 38 yards.
Georgia is likely playing for its College Football Playoff life on Saturday night. The Bulldogs fell to the first team out of the 12-team bracket in Tuesday’s rankings and would fall further with a third loss. With games remaining against UMass and Georgia Tech, it would seem unlikely that Georgia could get into the playoff at 9-3.
Tennessee, meanwhile, may have a path to the playoff even if it loses on Saturday night. The Vols could finish the season at 10-2 with wins over UTEP and Vanderbilt to end the season. That could be good enough to sneak into the field depending on how the rest of the conference shakes out.
