Nico Iamaleava opens up on Tennessee exit in first public comments
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Nico Iamaleava’s transfer from Tennessee to UCLA sent shockwaves throughout the college football world earlier this year.
On Thursday, Iamaleava publicly addressed his departure from Tennessee for the first time at Big Ten Media Days, saying that family was his primary motivation for leaving Knoxville and coming to the West Coast.
“I hope Tennessee fans understand that it was really one of the hardest decisions that I ever had to make. But I had to do what was best for me and my family. And ultimately, I wanted to come back home and be closer to my family,” Iamaleava said from the podium.
He later reiterated those remarks in a media scrum.
“I’d say that my decision to leave was extremely hard, one of the hardest decisions that I ever had to make. But family was the biggest thing to me,” Iamaleava said, according to On3.
Iamaleava acknowledged the reports that his decision to transfer was for financial purposes, with one report saying that he had signed a deal in 2022 worth $8 million by the end of his junior season and that he had been in contract negotiations with Tennessee in April, a report denied by his father.
“It was never (about finances),” Iamaleava said. “It was me getting back home closer to my family and playing at the highest level with my family’s support. In our Samoan culture, we’re always together, and that was a very important thing.”
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
