ESPN confirms Tennessee is pulling off “QB trade” for Nico Iamaleava replacement

Since the portal opened last week, Tennessee football has gauged interest from potential transfer quarterback prospects across college football and it looks like the Vols have found their guy.

This results in former Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava leaving the program and signing with UCLA. The deal reportedly will be for around $1 million in NIL earnings but will be closer to home for the LA native.

Now, the Vols are searching for his replacement and have signed former UCLA quarterback Joey Aguilar. Aguilar entered the portal after Nico announced his decision to join the UCLA team.

As reported by ESPN’s Chris Low, Aguilar and the Vols have met and reportedly come to an agreement to bring Aguilar to Rocky Top as the Vols’ quarterback for the 2025 season.

This is a crazy twist in the new era of college football centered around NIL and the transfer portal, with UCLA and Tennessee “trading” or swapping quarterbacks.

This could be an intriguing signing for Josh Heupel and the Vols. This is not only because Tennessee and UCLA would be “trading” or swapping quarterbacks, but also because Aguilar has proven experience and success as a starting quarterback and could put up video game numbers in Heupel’s system.

The idea of Aguilar being the Vols’ QB seems to have caught people’s attention, too. Aguilar was a gunslinger at App State, and with elite weapons around him on Rocky Top, he could quickly become one of the top quarterbacks in the SEC this fall.

Joey Aguilar to Tennessee would be super interesting. Very high upside 56 TD passes at App State. Aguilar to Matthews, Brazzell, Staley, Boo, etc. could be fun.

Not only did Aguilar have 56 touchdowns with App State last year, but he also threw for 7,212 yards and 61 touchdowns in his two seasons as a Mountaineer.

He transferred to UCLA with the expectation that he would be the Bruins’ starter this fall, but Nico’s unexpected transfer threw a wrench in those plans, potentially opening the door for Aguilar to come to Tennessee.

Heupel and the Vols took their time in finding a quarterback but it looks like Aguilar and the Vols could be a perfect fit in Heupel’s system. Now the former App State QB will have to grind out the summer learning Tennessee’s offense to make sure he is prepared for the season.