National recruiting director thinks Tennessee Vols are a legit threat to land 2023 5-star QB
2023 five-star quarterback Nicholaus Iamaleava is one of the most highly sought-after recruits in the nation. Iamaleava, 6-foot-5/195 lbs from Downey, CA (Warren), is ranked in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 4 quarterback in the country and the No. 16 overall player in the 2023 recruiting class. The usual suspects are involved in Iamaleava's recruitment — […]
2023 five-star quarterback Nicholaus Iamaleava is one of the most highly sought-after recruits in the nation.
Iamaleava, 6-foot-5/195 lbs from Downey, CA (Warren), is ranked in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 4 quarterback in the country and the No. 16 overall player in the 2023 recruiting class.
The usual suspects are involved in Iamaleava's recruitment — namely Alabama and Georgia.
And somewhat surprisingly, the Tennessee Vols are also a factor.
Now, it would probably be easy to quickly discount Tennessee in this battle — the Vols aren't on the same level as Alabama and Georgia when it comes to recruiting.
But it appears that UT is actually a legit contender for Iamaleava.
Rivals.com national recruiting director Adam Gorney thinks Iamaleava wants to go where he's "loved the most" and is a good fit.
The feeling now is that the four-star quarterback from Downey (Calif.) Warren is heavily considering SEC programs most with Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee leading the way. Some discount the Volunteers but the word is Iamaleava wants to go where he’s loved most – and the best fit – and that could be in Knoxville. UCLA and Oregon would be the two Pac-12 programs to watch but expect to see him somewhere in SEC country.
Iamaleava is the type of recruit that can change the trajectory of a college football program.
The California native has prototypical size. He's calm in the pocket, he reads defenses extremely well, and he's able to use his legs to keep plays alive. Iamaleava is everything an SEC program could want in a quarterback.
Iamaleava could put up ridiculous numbers in Josh Heupel's offense. The only question is whether or not that translates to a high draft slot. That question will start to get answered this fall as we see how draft analysts view Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker when it comes to the 2023 NFL Draft.
If Tennessee manages to beat out Alabama and Georgia for Iamaleava, it could easily be the turning point for a program that's been wandering in the wilderness for over 10 years.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK/Rivals.com
