Nico Iamaleava injury update: Star Tennessee QB out of the game out of nowhere

Tennessee football is without its star freshman quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, for the second half against Mississippi State. Gaston Moore came out to start Tennessee's first drive of the second half, and that's when ESPN reported that Nico is out of the rest of the game with an upper-body injury. 

Nico took a big hit at the end of the first half when the Vols were up 14-7. He came off the field shaken up but finished the first half, putting Tennessee in a position to get a pair of field goals before the end of the half.

The ESPN broadcast showed a different play that could have resulted in the injury. This play resulted in another big hit on Nico late in the first half, so it's possible the hits caught up with him. 

It hasn't been completely rare for Nico to take big hits throughout his freshman season. There have been times when Nico has been beaten and battered and responded positively, but it looks like the Tennessee coaching staff is taking precautions with their star quarterback, hoping backup Gaston Moore can get the job done and protect Tennessee's two-torque lead. 

The Vols' running back, Dylan Sampson, was also out to start the second half with an injury. Nico has been ruled out for the remainder of the game, while Sampson has been ruled as questionable to return.

At this point, the specifics of Nico's injury and how severe it could be are unclear, with Tennessee staring down a trip to Athens next week to play Georgia. 

The Nico and Sampson injuries don't seem to be changing the Vols' game plan for Mississippi State. Josh Heupel is still airing out the ball with Moore in the game, giving his backup quarterback a chance to extend Tennessee's lead.