The college football transfer portal is constantly moving, and 2025 is no exception. Aside from players wanting a fresh start elsewhere, coaches leaving or getting fired are a big reason players enter the portal.
One name you may know from the portal is none other than UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava. You may remember him from his transfer last offseason from Tennessee. The former five-star quarterback prospect transferred from the Vols to UCLA. After reportedly taking a lesser NIL deal to join the Bruins, Iamaleava may be on the move again.
That's because UCLA has fired head coach DeShaun Foster, whom Iamaleava transferred to play for last offseason. While players transferring three times in their careers isn't all that unique, Iamaleava being on the move again would add to the drama surrounding his career.
Let's take a look at Iamaleava's status with the Bruins and whether he could transfer yet again.
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Will Nico Iamaleava transfer from UCLA?
There's a real possibility. On Sept. 14, UCLA fired DeShaun Foster after the Bruins got off to an 0-3 start. Foster, a UCLA alumnus, took over for Chip Kelly after he left to take the offensive coordinator job at Ohio State. Foster finished 5-7 in his first season at UCLA. The Bruins were outscored 108-33 in their first three games.
As to why Iamaleava may now transfer, the NCAA allows players whose coaches get fired or take another job elsewhere to enter the transfer portal. Players are granted immediate eligibility upon doing so. Foster got fired last month, but the quarterback is dealing with even more staff turnover, as earlier this week the Bruins moved on from offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri.
UCLA interim head coach Tim Skipper was hired this year as a special assistant to Foster. He stated shortly after Foster's firing that he had talked to his players about evaluating their futures with the program.
"Had very positive conversations with our guys. There's nothing to announce or report that way," Skipper said last month. "This university, this campus, this coaching staff, has a lot to offer to these guys. You remind them of that, and they see it. They see how our energy is every day, and we're just going to take it one day at a time and keep on working."
Iamaleava was spotted at UCLA's practice on Sept. 17, and played in the Bruins' 17-14 loss to Northwestern on Sept. 27.
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Nico Iamaleava transfer deadline
The NCAA rules state that a player has 30 days from when a coach is fired to enter the portal. That means that Iamaleava has until Oct. 15 to enter the portal. Here's a look at UCLA's upcoming schedule:
- Vs. No. 7 Penn State, Oct. 4
- @ Michigan State, Oct. 11
- Vs. Maryland, Oct. 18
As you can see, Iamaleava would have to enter the portal before the Bruins' home game against the Terps.
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Why did Nico Iamaleava transfer to UCLA?
Iamaleava's transfer from Tennessee was reportedly over a dispute concerning his NIL deal with the Vols. As Tennessee was in the middle of spring practices, the quarterback was reportedly trying to re-negotiate his NIL deal with the school. He was also reaching out to other schools like Miami, Ole Miss and Oregon to gauge their interest.
Although Vols head coach Josh Heupel had smoothed things over with Iamaleava to return for 2025, tensions came to a head when the quarterback missed Tennessee's final spring practice on April 11. The practice was just one day before the Vols' annual spring game. As coaches and teammates attempted to reach Iamaleava, they were met with silence.
"As the day went on, it started to become obvious. He was gone and wasn't coming back," a Tennessee source told ESPN.
Iamaleava returned to his roots by going to UCLA. He played high school football at Warren High School in Downey, Calif., and the Bruins had offered Iamaleava as a recruit.
Nico Iamaleava-DeShaun Foster relationship
Foster and the Bruins were fired up to land Iamaleava at quarterback last offseason. Iamaleava being a local California product made the evaluation process that much easier.
"If it wasn't a local kid, it would've been a little bit more difficult. But being able to see him play in high school and evaluating that film at Tennessee wasn't hard to do," Foster said via ESPN of recruiting his quarterback earlier this year . "A lot of the kids on the team know him and have played with him."
Foster was also complimentary of his quarterback at Big Ten Media days over the summer:
#UCLA fired HC Deshaun Foster after the team started the season 0-3.
— Nick Hamilton (@NickHamilton213) September 14, 2025
I spoke w/ Coach Foster a couple of months ago at B1G Media Days about the expectations for QB Nico Iamaleava & the team for the season.
Wow!! pic.twitter.com/pU4nw7oWQ0
After Foster's firing, Iamaleava was asked about how the team is holding up. He seemed excited about where things were with Skipper as the interim.
“Man I’ve been good man,” Iamaleava said on Sept. 24. “I think coach (Tim) Skipper coming in and relaying the message to us about what we have to do for coach Foster has been great. The whole team has really heard the message.”
We'll see if Iamaleava stays with the team over the next couple weeks. Since he already used his redshirt season, he wouldn't be eligible to play until the fall of 2026, if he does transfer.
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