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Why Tennessee's Nico Iamaleava ran out of bounds in the last game against Arkansas

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Why Tennessee's Nico Iamaleava ran out of bounds in the last game against Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Tennessee football fans were in disbelief when quarterback Nico Iamaleava inexplicably went out of bounds as time expired, sealing a shocking 19-14 loss to Arkansas on Saturday.

And they all had the same thought: I can't believe it happened again.

In 2021, UT quarterback Joe Milton ran out of bounds instead of attempting a pass into the end zone on the final play of a 31-26 loss to Ole Miss.

“(It was) a different situation,” coach Josh Heupel said after the loss when asked why that particular mistake happened twice. “Senior quarterback experience compared to first (year) player.”

That's probably not the explanation UT fans want to hear. But none would have been satisfactory after the No. 4 Vols (4-1, 1-1 SEC) had such a lackluster performance against the Razorbacks (4-2, 2-1).

It is three years too late to understand Milton's error.

But why did Iamaleava make the same confusing mistake?

ADAMS: Poor decisions from Josh Heupel and Nico Iamaleava doom Tennessee

Nico Iamaleava's report on the last game

There were six seconds remaining when UT snapped the ball from the Arkansas 20-yard line.

And after Iamaleava fought, it was clear that time was up. Still, he continued to run right, never attempted a pass, and then ran out of bounds to end the game.

After the loss, the redshirt freshman tried to explain his mistake.

“As I was rolling out, I saw (Dont'e Thornton) open up. But if I threw the ball, he would be hit immediately,” Iamaleava said. “So I tried to get Chris Brazzell to work a little bit and he was covered at that point.

“As soon as I tried to let go of the ball, I felt it slip out of my hand. I have to hold the ball better.”

So Iamaleava was trying to find an open receiver and not just any receiver. And when he finally found an option that was better than nothing, he couldn't grab the ball to make the pass.

Then he ran out of real estate.

Josh Heupel: “You can’t keep the ball in your hands”

After the game, Arkansas fans immediately stormed the field in celebration. UT players crowded into the locker room.

A few minutes later, Heupel knew that the question of the final would be asked in the post-game press conference.

“In this scenario, you have to bring the ball up and give one of your guys an opportunity to make a play,” Heupel said. “You can’t keep the ball in your hands. You want to give someone the opportunity to make a play. (Iamaleava) is disappointed by this. But he has to come back and recover from this.

“Nico, just like me and just like our football team, wished we had played better.”

Iamaleava was 16 of 28 passing for 156 yards. He was under constant pressure throughout the game and the Vols never fully adjusted.

It was also Iamaleava's first loss as a starter. He had won his first five starts in a streak that stretched back to last season's Citrus Bowl.

Now the former five-star recruit must lead UT in a rebounding game against Florida on Oct. 12 (7 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium.

“He played too well not to react properly,” said Heupel. “And I know he will.”

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. e-mail [email protected]. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing knoxnews.com/subscribe.

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