Tennessee football transfer Nico Iamaleava made unique, but undesirable, history in the sport during his Rocky Top exit.
As the Los Angeles Times’ Bill Plaschke notes, Iamaleava is the sport’s first unofficial player firing.
“Tennessee decided he wasn’t worth it. Then Iamaleava decided Tennessee wasn’t worth it,” Plaschke wrote.
“Thus began a vicious journey during which Iamaleava became college football’s first big holdout, then college football’s most ill-timed walkout, then college football’s first unofficial player firing, then … hello UCLA!”
Vols football transfer Nico Iamaleava wasn’t given chance to change his mind
Plaschke was, by and large, disgusted by the Bruins’ high-cost quarterback acquisition. Iamaleava’s ability to lead a locker room was seriously questioned by the jaded long-time journalist.
“This is a disappointing outfit desperately in need of a field leader, a staunch huddle general who can command loyalty and model integrity and win the battles,” Plaschke wrote.
“So what do they do?
“They hire a deserter.
“They hire a kid who just quit on one of the country’s top programs, who fled during the worst possible time because his monetary demands weren’t met, and who was booted out before he changed his mind.”
Perhaps Nic Iamaleava calling On3’s Peter Nakos a “b****” for reporting on Nico’s NIL negotiations was the QB’s representation’s way of trying to reverse the narrative. Either way, it was too little, too late.
Based on Plaschke’s piercing op-ed, the damage is already done.