BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — After Tennessee’s dominant performance against NC State in the Duke’s Mayo Classic, the Southeastern Conference announced Monday that a pair of Tennessee football players earned weekly recognition from the league office. Redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava was tabbed SEC Freshman of the Week for the second week in a row, while senior center Cooper Mays garnered SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors for the second time in his career.
Iamaleava, making his third career start, accounted for 276 yards of total offense and three touchdowns to lead Tennessee past No. 24 NC State, 51-10, in Charlotte. Iamaleava finished 16-of-23 for 211 yards and two touchdowns with two picks through the air and added 65 yards rushing on eight carries with a 31-yard touchdown run.
The signal caller from Long Beach, California, defeated a ranked opponent for the second time in three starts, and it was the second time in his career that he has rushed for at least one touchdown and passed for at least one touchdown. In Iamaleava’s three starts at quarterback, Tennessee has outscored its opponents 155-13.
Mays, a preseason All-American and first-team All-SEC recipient, paved the way for a dominant Tennessee offense that put up 460 yards in the win over NC State. Mays did not allow a sack, a penalty or a QB hit against a solid Wolfpack defense that saw the Vols rush for 249 yards on the evening.
The Kingston native extended his streak of not allowing a sack to 16 straight games, which dates to 2022. Mays and the offensive line did not allow a sack the entire game. The 249 rushing yards were the most allowed by NC State in a regular season game since North Carolina had 300 in November 2021, and the 460 yards by the UT offense was the most allowed by NC State since Louisiana Tech had 480 on Oct. 2, 2021.
During the Josh Heupel era (2021-present), Tennessee has compiled 32 SEC weekly honors — including five Freshman of the Week awards and 10 Offensive Lineman of the Week accolades.
SEC Weekly Awards – Week 2
Offensive Player of the Week
Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
Defensive Player of the Week
Nick Emmanwori, FS, South Carolina
Special Teams Player of the Week
Kai Kroeger, P, South Carolina
Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week
Jake Majors, C, Texas
Cooper Mays, C, Tennessee
Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week
Gracen Halton, DT, Oklahoma
Tim Keenan III, DL, Alabama
Freshman of the Week
Nico Iamaleava, QB, Tennessee
Tennessee Football – 2024 SEC Weekly Honors (3)
SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week (1)
Cooper Mays (vs. NC State, 9/7)
SEC Freshman of the Week (2)
Nico Iamaleava (vs. Chattanooga, 8/31; vs. NC State, 9/7)
