Former Tennessee Vols QB Nico Iamaleava receives early prediction to land with Power-4 program
When news broke on Saturday that Nico Iamlaeava and the Tennessee Vols had decided to part ways, the early speculation was that the California native would land with a program on the west coast. But it looks like the former Vol could be staying on the east coast, at least based on an early prediction […]
When news broke on Saturday that Nico Iamlaeava and the Tennessee Vols had decided to part ways, the early speculation was that the California native would land with a program on the west coast.
But it looks like the former Vol could be staying on the east coast, at least based on an early prediction from 247Sports.
Noles247 Florida State insider Brendan Sonnone made a crystal ball prediction for the North Carolina Tar Heels to land Iamaleava.
The Tar Heels could use a quarterback with Max Johnson still working his way back from a tough season-ending leg injury that he suffered in the 2024 season-opener against Minnesota.
North Carolina would be a great landing spot for Iamaleava. The former five-star recruit's reputation took a brutal hit last week. Playing for UNC head coach Bill Belichick for a couple of seasons would help rehabilitate Iamaleava's image while making him more attractive to NFL franchises (thanks to Belichick's obviously deep NFL connections).
The transfer portal hasn't officially opened yet, so this prediction could be viewed as a sign that some "tampering" is happening behind the scenes. But at this point, it doesn't seem that anyone is policing tampering, nor does anyone seem to care that it's happening.
Update:
On3's Pete Nakos reported on Monday that UNC is out of the mix for Iamaleava.
Things can change quickly in the NCAA transfer portal era, but based on Nakos' report, it doesn't sound like Iamaleava will be heading to Chapel Hill.
Nico Iamaleava isn’t a villain and he leaves behind a legacy at Tennessee that should be remembered fondly
There’s a lot of bad Nico takes out there
