Following an NIL dispute, quarterback Nico Iamaleava is set to depart Tennessee after just one season with the Vols.
Effectively a free agent following his decision to leave the program, Iamaleava, a former five-star recruit, has already drawn interest from a handful of schools ahead of the opening of the spring transfer portal on Wednesday, April 16.
On3's college football insider Pete Nakos reported on the situation Monday and noted that there's three teams who could be in the mix to land Iamaleava via the transfer portal. Per Nakos, Iamaleava has drawn interest from UCLA, Tulane and North Carolina.
Iamaleava is a Long Beach, Calif. native, so it would make sense that he'd be interested in transferring to UCLA in order to play closer to his home. Nakos notes that UNC is a "known buyer" in the upcoming transfer portal window, indicating that Bill Belichick and Co. could be looking to make a late splash by bringing in the 20-year-old. As for Tulane, the Green Wave are have suspended starting quarterback T.J. Finley, creating a vacancy at the position.
Additionally, both USC and Notre Dame have been linked to Iamaleava since the news of his departure from Knoxville broke, though the two schools are reportedly not expected to pursue him.
During his redshirt freshman season, Iamaleava recorded 19 touchdown passes and five interceptions while completing 63.8% of his passes.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Three Schools Linked to Nico Iamaleava Following Decision to Leave Tennessee.
