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Nico Iamaleava’s father calls out former Tennessee football walk-on for social media post

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Nico Iamaleava’s father calls out former Tennessee football walk-on for social media post


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The father of Tennessee football quarterback Nico Iamaleava, called out a former Vols walk-on and former Waverly High School offensive line coach, Clay Keaton, Monday for what Nicholaus Iamaleava said was a message Keaton sent his son through direct message from Keaton’s X account, formerly Twitter, Oct. 19.

The Vols played Alabama Oct. 19, beating the Tide, 24-17. Over a week later, Nicholaus Iamaleava took a screenshot of a direct message that came from the account of Clay Keaton that read “You dumb (expletive)”.

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Nicholaus Iamaleava responded Monday on his own X account: “Hey @ClayKeaton65 Nico was busy helping UT beat Alabama. You should try the same with your HS team since you’re 0-9 instead of jumping into kids DMs. But here’s the attention you was looking for. Shout out to all the real Vol fans! #GBO”.

Waverly football coach Randall Boldin told The Tennessean on Tuesday that Keaton actually has not been on the Tigers coaching staff this season.

“This issue was brought to our attention (Monday) afternoon,” Boldin said in an email. “However, Clay Keaton is not on our staff this season. Mr. Keaton coached with us last season, but started a new job and was not back with us this season.”

Boldin said he tried to reach out to Keaton on Monday to have Keaton remove his ties to Waverly’s football program from his social media profile but was unable to reach him. Keaton’s X account profile no longer mentions Waverly, but his profile photo is of him on the Tigers’ sideline.

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The Tennessean reached out to a parent of Keaton with a message to contact the newspaper for a comment, but was unsuccessful.

“We, as a school and football program, do not condone his actions, and had he been currently on our staff he would have been let go,” Boldin said.

Nico Iamaleava was 14-of-27 for 194 yards passing with a touchdown against Alabama. Tennessee outscored the Crimson Tide, 24-10 in the second half for its second win against the Tide in three seasons.

Keaton, a Grace Christian Academy of Knoxville graduate, was a 6-foot-6, 300-pound offensive lineman who was a walk-on at Tennessee as a freshman in 2015.

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Reach sports writer George Robinson at georgerobinsontheleafchronicle.com and on the X platform (formerly Twitter) @Cville_Sports. 



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Tennessee

Remembering one of Middle Tennessee’s largest tornado outbreaks 4 years later

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9 hours ago

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December 14, 2025

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Remembering one of Middle Tennessee’s largest tornado outbreaks 4 years later


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Four years ago, Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky were impacted by one of the largest tornado outbreaks on record. On Dec. 10 and 11, 2021, a tornado outbreak impacted areas from Arkansas and Missouri all the way into northern Indiana and Ohio. There was a total of 66 tornadoes; 16 of […]



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Tennessee

Tracking Music City Bowl opt outs for Tennessee and Illinois

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21 hours ago

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December 13, 2025

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Tracking Music City Bowl opt outs for Tennessee and Illinois


Tracking the opt outs for both Tennessee and Illinois before the Music City Bowl on December 30 (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN) at Nissan Stadium in Nashville:

Tennessee

Linebacker Arion Carter: Carter over the last seasons had 96 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in 31 career games. He had a team-high 76 tackles this season, with 6.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks while appearing in 10 games. He missed two games and was limited against Oklahoma in November while dealing with turf toe injuries. Carter had 68 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss in 13 games last season and 17 tackles and 1.0 tackles for loss in eight games as a freshman in 2023. 

Wide Receiver Chris Brazzell II: He a breakout senior season in his second year with the Vols, catching 62 passes for 1,017 yards and nine touchdowns. He had 19 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns in 2024, after transferring from Tulane. In 15 games at Tulane he caught 45 passes for 722 yards and five touchdowns. Brazzell is ranked No. 7 at wide receiver on Mel Kiper Jr.’s NFL Draft Big Board. He’s ranked No. 34 overall on ESPN’s list of the best available prospects in the draft.

Cornerback Jermod McCoy: Did not play this season after tearing his ACL during offseason training in January. He was a star last season with 44 tackles, nine passes defended and four interceptions. He had 31 tackles and two interceptions in 12 games as a freshman at Oregon State before transferring to Tennessee. 

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Illinois

Offensive Tackle J.C. Davis: Bret Bielema said the Illinois starting left tackle is opting out of the Music City Bowl. He was an All-Big Ten First Team pick by the league coaches this season and the No. 3 left tackle this season according to Pro Football Focus grades. He had made 49 straight starts before opting out of the bowl game.

EDGE Gabe Jacas: The Illinois outside linebacker declared for the NFL Draft on Friday night. He led the Big Ten this season with 11.0 sacks. He had 13.5 tackles for loss and 43 total tackles in 12 games this season. He finishes second in Illinois program history for career sacks, with 27.0, trailing only Simeon Rice. Jacas had 74 tackles, 8.0 sacks and 13.0 tackles for loss last season, after combining for 8.0 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss in his first two seasons at Illinois.



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More than 8,500 layoffs hit Tennessee in 2025, nearly 19% increase from 2024

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December 13, 2025

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More than 8,500 layoffs hit Tennessee in 2025, nearly 19% increase from 2024


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Tennessee employers laid off more than 8,500 workers in 2025 compared to 7,320 last year, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

This is about a 19% increase in layoffs, with WARN notices impacting 8,691 Tennesseans to date. As of 2023, 5,168 Tennessee workers were laid off through WARN notices.

Counties in Middle Tennessee impacted include:

  • Davidson
  • Sumner
  • Maury
  • Rutherford
  • Williamson
  • Wilson
  • Coffee
  • DeKalb
  • Bedford
  • Lawrence
  • Putnam

The largest layoff this year was in Maury County. Come January, 710 employees will be laid off from GM Ultium Cells’ Spring Hill facility. Research Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee Knoxville Michael Kofoed tells FOX 17 News that the facility is is likely impacted by the rise on steel tariffs ruled out by the Trump administration. He adds steel tariffs raise input costs for employers which directly impacts employees’ salary or employment.

The second largest layoff impacted 658 workers at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC in Rutherford County with 615 workers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center permanently laid off. WARN notices are reports a company is required to file with the state to give workers time to find future employment.

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Kofoed states that Tennessee is seeing a troubling trend, with layoffs skyrocketing since 2023.

“That is a very big and concerning number,” Kofoed said.

According to CNBC, more than 1.1 million U.S. employees were laid off this year, the highest 11-month total since 2020.



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