Would Gaston Moore start for Tennessee football at Georgia if Nico Iamaleava is injured?
Tennessee football lost starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava due to injury after the first half against Mississippi State on Saturday night.
Iamaleava did not return after halftime, and ESPN reported that the redshirt freshman is out the remainder of the game with an upper-body injury.
Fifth-year senior quarterback Gaston Moore started the second half of the No. 7 Vols' matchup against the Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium.
Iamaleava's exact injury and status are unclear – and now, so is the starting quarterback for Tennessee (7-1, 4-1 SEC) on the road against No. 2 Georgia (7-2, 5-2) at Sanford Stadium on Nov. 16 (7:30 p.m., ABC).
Will Gaston Moore start against Georgia?
If Iamaleava isn't available, there's a strong possibility Moore would start.
Saturday was the second time Moore has replaced Iamaleava due to an injury. The first time was against Alabama when Moore played one down and threw an interception. That was the only down Moore played in SEC play before Saturday.
Moore, a 6-foot-2 walk-on, has appeared in 12 games over the last four seasons. He has thrown two touchdowns in his career – both of them were this season against Kent State. Moore is 11-of-17 passing for 163 yards this season over four games. He has thrown two interceptions this season and three total in his career.
Moore is 21-of-34 in his career with the Vols for 235 total yards. The longest pass he has completed was a 53-yarder against Kent State.
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Will Jake Merklinger get a shot?
Tennessee's other option at quarterback is freshman Jake Merklinger.
He saw action in the Vols' blowout wins against Chattanooga and Kent State. He is 6-of-9 passing for 48 yards. His longest pass was a 13-yarder against Chattanooga.
Merklinger has not seen action in any of Tennessee's games since Kent State.
Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her atcora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Will Gaston Moore start for Tennessee vs Georgia if Nico Iamaleava is out?
