Tennessee transfer quarterback Nico Iamaleava has signed with UCLA, the school announced on Sunday. Iamaleava’s transfer decision ends a significant couple of weeks for 247Sports’ top-ranked player in the portal. Tennessee moved on from the Southern California native ahead of its April 13 spring game and the opening of the spring portal window, ending a high-stakes standoff over NIL contract negotiations.
Iamaleava also confirmed his commitment to the Bruins in a post on Instagram.
“My journey at UT has come to an end,” Iamaleava wrote. “This decision was incredibly difficult, and truthfully, not something I expected to make this soon. But I trust God’s timing, and I believe He’s leading me where I need to be. Even though this chapter is ending, a new chapter has begun and I am committed to UCLA!”
Iamaleava sought a new deal from Tennessee worth $4 million annually, nearly double his original reported deal, per ESPN’s Chris Low. Iamaleava’s lucrative first deal represented a high-water mark in the early NIL era in college athletics, and his standoff over more money was a somewhat fitting, if not ironic, way for the two sides to part ways.
UCLA’s basketball program added former New Mexico star Donovan Dent last month, and Iamaleava’s addition marks the latest high-profile transfer portal prospect the school has landed in as many weeks. The price tag to land Dent — one of college basketball’s most coveted transfers — was around $3 million, sources told CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter.
Iamaleava threw for 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns during the 2024 campaign. He helped Tennessee reach the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff in his first season as a full-time starter last fall after spending the 2023 season as a backup to Joe…
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