Nico Iamaleava still can’t really find his footing since leaving the Tennessee Volunteers.
His name was massively in the headlines more than a year ago, when he wanted more money from the Vols and couldn’t get it, so he hit the transfer portal.
Iamaleava hasn’t lived up to that saga, though. He keeps hitting bumps in the road.
The latest came on Monday, when injury news emerged about the talented quarterback, who is now at UCLA.
Nico Iamaleava Injury Update
Iamaleava is going to miss the rest of this season, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.
As part of UCLA’s upset of Oregon, Iamaleava hurt his leg in the first half — while being tackled, his knee buckled.
Iamaleava returned for one play after getting hurt but then didn’t play after that as backup Ty Dieffenbach helped UCLA hold off the Ducks anyway.
The play didn’t look good, and the news from Zenitz is indeed that it’s a tough outcome for Iamaleava.
This is his second season with the Bruins.
Last year, Iamaleava completed 64.4% of passes for 1,928 yards in 11 games. He threw 13 touchdowns with seven interceptions. He also ran an impressive 112 times for 505 yards and four more TDs.
This season so far, Iamaleava had thrown for 982 yards (62.1%) with four TDs and four INTs. He also had 42 runs for 144 yards and a touchdown.
Before exiting against Oregon, Iamaleava was 10-for-17 for 162 yards with two interceptions.
He still hasn’t lived up to his 2024 season at Tennessee, when he threw for 19 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions while throwing for 2,616 yards on 63.8% completion rate.
It was that season, and a run into the College Football Playoff, that led to Iamaleava asking for more money from Tennessee.
Instead, he has taken a reported paycut and now has an unfortunate season-ending injury.
Nico Iamaleava NIL at UCLA
Iamaleava is reportedly making between $1.2 and $1.5 million to play this season for UCLA.
It’s a decrease from what had been reported as $2.4 million in his final season with the Volunteers.
Iamaleava — or someone helping him make decisions — apparently wasn’t content with that amount, though, starting one of the highest-profile dramas of this new NIL-layered era of the transfer portal.
Tennessee has seemingly turned out just fine at quarterback over the last couple of seasons, validating their decision to not break the bank for Iamaleava.
And while UCLA likely did a logical thing to bring in the talented QB, it hasn’t worked out quite as well as they would’ve hoped.
This season, though, the Bruins are a darkhorse CFP contender under new head coach Bob Chesney — and that takes on a new feeling after losing their starting quarterback for the season.
Nico Iamaleava’s Post-Tennessee Saga Takes Another Twist at UCLA