Nico Iamaleava injury hits Tennessee at worst possible moment

The Tennessee Volunteers have a mega matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs coming up. It may be time to start lighting prayer candles to ensure star quarterback Nico Iamaleava is available to play in that game.

Iamaleava was ruled out of Saturday's game against Mississippi State after sustaining an "upper body injury." It's not clear when that injury occurred.

The fact that Tennessee ruled him out of the second half entirely is a worry. The optimistic spin: The Vols already led 20-7 going into the break. Maybe Josh Heupel and his staff were being cautious with an injury that's otherwise not series. The pessimistic take: Tennessee wouldn't have taken a chance voluntarily ruling out the QB in a game separated by just two touchdowns.

We won't know exactly how worried Tennessee fans should be until the team gives a more definitive update on Iamaleava's status. Either way, the timing of this injury is less than ideal.

Nico Iamaleava injury puts Tennessee's hopes vs. Georgia in jeopardy

The Volunteers are traveling to Athens next week to take on Georgia in a game with SEC title game implications. Tennessee could put themselves one step closer to a trip to Mercedes-Benz Stadium while effectively knocking the Bulldogs out of the conference title race. Winning the SEC means not only securing an automatic bid to the College Football Playoff, but a first round bye.

Even without a title game berth, the Vols would be in an excellent spot to punch their ticket to the playoff with a win over Georgia. If they get that victory, they're likely looking at an 11-1 record, closing out the regular season with likely wins over UTEP and Vanderbilt.

So having Iamaleava is a big deal. He hasn't been everything the Vols hoped he would be this season, but he's gotten hot in the last few weeks. He tossed two touchdowns in the first half against Mississippi State.

No disrespect to backup Gaston Moore, who took over for Iamaleava in the second half, but he's not the same level of passing threat. Tennessee's hopes against Georgia hinge on Iamaleava being available and healthy.

It doesn't help that star running back Dylan Sampson was also dealing with an injury against Mississippi State. He was able to return to action in the second half, but his status is also going to be closely watched over the next week.