Following Nico Iamaleava’s sudden departure from Tennessee football and his transfer to UCLA, there were still questions about what he would do after the 2025 season. Would he play well enough to enter the NFL draft? Could he re-enter the transfer portal for a third school in four years? Would he end up staying at UCLA despite a coaching change and awful season for the Bruins?
On Monday, he made his decision. Iamaleava ‘re-signed’ with UCLA, according to a report from On3. He’ll be tasked with learning a new system this off-season, though, with JMU’s Bob Chesney taking the job to replace the fired DeShaun Foster. The Dukes just lost to Oregon in the College Football Playoffs, letting Chesney put his full attention into the Bruins.
Iamaleava battled some injury, but still threw for 1,928 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions on 64.4% passing this year. He also ran for 505 yards and four scores. The team went 3-9 with its only wins over Penn State, Michigan State and Maryland in back-to-back-to-back weeks.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME.
Back with my brothers.
Same vision.
Same goals.
Same grind.
Locked in.
Time to work! #UCLA 💙💛🔥#8CLAP #4sUP #TOABOYZ pic.twitter.com/BqbPkbNWRp— Nico Iamaleava Jr.🇦🇸 🇼🇸 (@nico_iamaleava8) December 22, 2025
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Iamaleava was set to be Tennessee’s returning starting quarterback in 2025 until reports surfaced that he was negotiating his NIL compensation during spring practice. After reports went public, he missed Friday’s practice ahead of the annual spring Orange & White Game, marking the last straw. Josh Heupel announced that the program was moving on and would find a new quarterback for the season.
The Vols would ultimately land Joey Aguilar as his replacement. After spending his spring at UCLA, he also had only the fall slate to prepare for the year. He threw for 3,444 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
The year prior to departing, Iamaleava quarterbacked Tennessee to a College Football Playoff appearance in 2024. However, the offense was far from the reason for success, with the defense carrying most of the load. Iamaleava recorded 2,616 yards, 19 touchdowns and five interceptions in 13 games that year.
He was a five-star recruit out of high school, widely considered the No. 2 prospect in the class behind Arch Manning. His little brother, Madden Iamaleava, is a backup quarterback for the Bruins, as well.
