The transfer portal opens on Wednesday and Tennessee suddenly is working on keeping its star quarterback Nico Iamaleava from leaving.
Rumors have been swirling that the Heisman candidate approached Tennessee to renegotiate his multi-million dollar NIL deal. These rumors persisted despite a strong denial by Iamaleava’s father on X. The facts got even murkier when Iamaleava, according to multiple reports, did not attend Tennessee’s spring practice on Friday.
Whether Iamaleava wants a larger NIL deal or wants to ensure the Vols are going to sign additional offensive playmakers in the spring transfer window, the public nature of this negotiation is unlike anything college football has seen with a player the caliber of Iamaleava.
Tennessee signed Iamaleava as part of its 2023 recruiting class that ranked No. 12 in the nation. The Southern California native was the No. 2 overall prospect in the 2023 Rivals250, behind only Arch Manning. Iamaleava saw limited playing time in five games during the 2023 season as a true freshman. He started the Tennessee bowl game against Iowa that season, throwing for 151 yards and completing 63.2-percent of his passes.
In his first full season as Tennessee’s starter, Iamaleava led the Vols to the 2024 College Football Playoffs and threw for 2,617 yards, 19 touchdowns and five interceptions with a completion percentage of 63.6. Iamaleava added 475 rushing yards and three more touchdowns.
Tennessee’s 10-3 record last season included wins over Oklahoma, Florida and Alabama.
