Former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava is fighting back against critics after his controversial exit from the Volunteers program over NIL negotiations. The sophomore QB is denying allegations that he attempted to sabotage Tennessee’s College Football Playoff game against national champion Ohio State.
Reports emerged last Saturday that the Tennessee football program was moving forward without Iamaleava. The quarterback reportedly sought to increase his NIL compensation from $2.4 million to $4 million. According to ESPN, the situation deteriorated when Iamaleava missed Friday’s practice and team meetings while ignoring calls and messages from the team.
“There’s no one bigger than the Power T, and that includes me,” Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel stated.
In the wake of his abrupt departure, social media critics have accused Iamaleava of trying to undermine Tennessee’s playoff performance against the Buckeyes. The quarterback addressed these allegations directly on his Instagram story.
“Damn I tried to sit out and throw the playoff game too?” Iamaleava wrote sarcastically. “These boys just make me laugh man ain’t no way.”
In another post, Iamaleava shared a photo with teammate Navy Shuler captioned: “how ima throw this game rq.”
During Tennessee’s 42-17 loss to Ohio State, Iamaleava completed 14 of 31 passes for 104 yards while rushing for 47 yards on 20 carries with two touchdowns.
For the 2024 season, he posted a 63.8 completion percentage with 2,616 passing yards, 19 touchdowns, and five interceptions. His ground game added 358 yards on 109 attempts with three scores.
Iamaleava is reportedly in discussions with UCLA, though for less compensation than his Tennessee arrangement would have provided.
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