The Ohio State football program took down Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff. It was complete domination from the Buckeyes, taking them down 42-17. Had they not held up in the second half, things could have been worse for the Volunteers.
Since that loss, things have gone from bad to worse for the Vols. While the Ohio State Buckeyes went on to win the national championship, Meanwhile, the Volunteers are involved in a very rocky Spring, which is when fans are supposed to be the most excited about their team.
Nico Iamaleava is involved in quite a controversy. The starting quarterback is allegedly asking for more NIL money from the Vols after just one year as a starter. He tried to do it in the winter and has now sat out a Spring practice as NIl negotiations continue. Did Ohio State break Tennessee?
Did the Ohio State football team break Tennessee?
The Buckeyes may have crushed Tennesee to the point that they will not be able to hold onto their starting quarterback, despite building their whole offense around him. That would be a devastating development for a program that finally achieved something last season.
Irrelevance was a really hard place for the Vols to be, and they were there for 25 years. Only in the last couple of years did they finally start sniffing the College Football Playoff. They finally made it last season, but it looks like they are poised to take a major step back.
If Iamaleava does decide to enter the transfer portal, the Buckeyes should stay far away from him. He is not someone who is going to make the team significantly better. They love Julian Sayin and also Tavien St. Clair. Both quarterbacks have bright futures in Columbus.
Iamaleava seems more concerned about how much money a program is going to pay him than he is about how to get better. He threw for just 104 yards in the final game last year against Ohio State. That final performance might send Tennessee back to being irrelevant for another indefinite period of time.