UCLA football has put together a winning streak after losing its first four games of the season. The Bruins knocked off Maryland 20-17 on Saturday night as Mateen Bhaghani knocked through a 23-yard field goal as time expired to earn UCLA its third straight win.
How did former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava perform in the victory? Not terribly but certainly not as well as he did in wins over Penn State and Michigan State the last two weeks.
Iamaleava completed 21-of-35 passes for 221 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. On the ground, Iamaleava rushed for 25 yards on eight carries.
The two interceptions were costly for UCLA, especially a third quarter pick six that gave Maryland the lead. The Terrapins struggled to move the football all game, totaling just 337 yards. The pick six helped the Terrapins hold steady despite the poor offensive showing.
MARYLAND PICK SIX 😤@TerpsFootball pic.twitter.com/hH6M2wT3Rq
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 19, 2025
But credit to Iamaleava, he bounced back from the costly mistake and played solid football down the stretch. The redshirt sophomore quarterback led the five-play, 68-yard drive that set the Bruins up for the game winning field goal. On that drive, Iamaleava completed passes of 14 and 19 yards before a long Anthony Frias run set up the kick.
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Through seven games this season, Iamaleava has completed 135-of-207 passes for 1,355 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. He’s added 360 rushing yards and four touchdowns. For comparison’s sake, Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar has completed 146-of-226 passes for 1,948 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions. He’s added 97 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.
After a manageable stretch of schedule, the challenge ramps up for UCLA over the next few weeks. The Bruins (3-4 (3-1 Big 10) travel to Indiana next week before concluding the season with a home matchup against Nebraska, a road trip to Ohio State, a home matchup against Washington and a road matchup with USC to end the season.
Following a loss against Alabama, Tennessee is 5-2 (2-2 SEC) and heads back on the road next week to face Kentucky at Kroger Field in Lexington. The Vols have one buy game remaining as well as SEC matchups with the Wildcats, Oklahoma, Florida and Vanderbilt.
