By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Tennessee Volunteers made a big statement on Saturday night.
Quarterback Nico Iamaleava combined for 276 yards and three touchdowns, former walk-on safety Will Brooks’ 85-yard interception return for a score highlighted a dominant defensive performance and the 14th-ranked Vols trounced No. 24 North Carolina State 51-10 in the Duke’s Mayo Classic.
Iamaleava completed 16 of 23 passes for 211 yards and threw TDs to Miles Kitselman and Holden Staes. He also ran for 65 yards, including a 31-yard score, as the Vols scored on eight of their 11 possessions with the redshirt freshman under center.
“He played within himself and responded well to adversity and that is one of the things we haven’t seen from him,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said of Iamaleava overcoming two interceptions. “I am really proud of his demeanor.”
Despite the two mistakes, Iamaleava passed the first major test of his starting career with flying colors. The Vols have now scored 120 points in their first two games following a 69-3 win over Chattanooga in the opener.
“It was a little sloppy in the beginning but I thought we finished strong in the second half,” Iamaleava said.
Dylan Sampson ran for 132 yards and two touchdowns as Tennessee (2-0) outgained NC State 460 yards to 143.
Tennessee limited NC State quarterback Grayson McCall to 104 yards passing and forced three turnovers. The Vols held the Wolfpack to 39 yards rushing on 28 carries and NC State’s only touchdown came on a pick-six.
Heupel called it an “elite” defensive performance.
“The standard at Tennessee is to be elite on defense. This is the home of Reggie White, Al Wilson and Eric Berry,” Heupel said.
The offense wasn’t too bad either.
Iamaleava didn’t take long to show off his skillset, breaking containment and outracing two defenders to pick up 12 yards on a third-and-7 play to keep the Vols’ opening drive alive. Tennessee would break through on its second drive with a series of short completions by Iamaleava before Sampson raced nine yards up the middle for a touchdown.
After the teams traded field goals, NC State (1-1) drove deep into Tennessee territory before McCall overthrew tight end Justin Joly in the flat and Brooks grabbed the first interception of his career and raced untouched down the left sideline for the touchdown and a 17-3 lead. It was the 10th-longest INT return for a touchdown in school history and the longest since Daniel Bituli’s 97-yarder against Alabama in 2017.
“That was part of the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Heupel said.
Max Gilbert tacked on a 45-yard field goal at the end of the first half to give the Vols a 17-point lead at the break.
Things quickly went from bad to worse for NC State in the second half.
On Tennessee’s opening possession of the third quarter, Iamaleava moved the chains with a fourth-down run and then found a wide-open Kitselman down the left sideline for a touchdown.
Dominic Bailey followed with a strip of McCall and recovered at the NC State 22-yard line leading to Gilbert’s third field of the game and the rout was on.
And when NC State was stuffed on a desperation fourth-and-1 run in its own territory, Iamaleava put the game away with a burst up the middle on a QB draw with 4:07 left in the third quarter.
“It got away from us. It snowballed as it went,” NC State coach Dave Doeren said. “We have a lot of work to do to get back to it.”
Doeren said he plans to stick with McCall at quarterback.
“He’s mad at himself, but he has to get back and flush it,” Doeren said. “We have great confidence in Grayson. As a head coach I completely believe in him.”
Vols use 12 personnel
Offensively the Vols used a lot of two tight end personnel, something that took the Wolfpack by surprise.
“This is deepest our tight end room has been and it will be a part of what we continue to do,” Heupel said.
The takeaway
Tennessee: The Vols’ up-tempo offense was clicking on all cylinders after the game’s first drive and their defense was outstanding. This has the look of a team that has the potential to compete for a national championship.
NC State: The Wolfpack offense looked completely out of sync as it managed just 27 yards in the second half and turned it over three times. Unlike last week against FCS school Western Carolina, NC State wasn’t able to mount a fourth-quarter rally.
Poll implications
With a strong showing against a Top 25 team, the Vols are likely to move up in the rankings possibly into the Top 10. The Wolfpack can say goodbye to their Top 25 ranking after a lackluster performance last week against Western Carolina and this debacle.
Up next
Tennessee: Will be a big favorite on Saturday when it hosts Kent State.
NC State: Returns home to play Louisiana Tech on Saturday.