Tennessee’s decision to part ways with Nico Iamaleava has left some college football programs eager to court the most high-profile quarterback available this spring.
Following the shocking revelation that Iamaleava would be entering the transfer portal, reports quickly surfaced that three of the programs most interested in Nico were UCLA, Tulane, and Bill Belichick’s North Carolina Tar Heels.
However, despite the speculation linking him to North Carolina, it now appears that Bill Belichick has decided to take his hat out of the ring.
After a solid redshirt freshman season in which he led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff, Iamaleava’s relationship with the Vols quickly fell apart.
Iamaleava decided to skip practice last Friday and ignored attempts to contact him. This move was all a part of a failed strategy to renegotiate his NIL deal.
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel immediately put his foot down and made it clear that the program would not cave in to Iamaleava’s head-scratching demands.
“Obviously, we’re moving forward as a program without him. I said it to the guys today. There’s no one that’s bigger than the Power T. That includes me,” Heupel said over the weekend.
“This program has been around for a long time. There are a lot of great coaches, a lot of great players who came before that laid the cornerstone pieces, the legacy, the tradition that is Tennessee football.
“It’s going to be around a long time after I’m gone and after they’re gone.”
The stunning fallout immediately sparked rumors about potential landing spots, with North Carolina initially seen as a strong contender.
But a report from On3’s Pete Nakos quickly dashed those hopes, revealing that Iamaleava would not be heading to Chapel Hill after all.
The legendary Belichick, who’s made it clear that his program would resemble an NFL organization much more than a college team, had been expected to pursue Iamaleava.
However, the program may instead focus on a different quarterback transfer, specifically South Alabama’s Gio Lopez.
Lopez entered the portal earlier this week, and both Nakos and ESPN’s Eli Lederman identified the redshirt freshman as a possible target for the Tar Heels.
Belichick’s unexpected jump to college football has already shaken up the landscape.
The six-time Super Bowl champion will now lead a North Carolina team that finished last season with a disappointing 6-7 record.
Belichick’s tenure will look to restore the program’s competitiveness in the ACC, and a new quarterback could play a significant role in that mission.
While North Carolina had a star running back in Omarion Hampton, who racked up 1,660 rushing yards last season, the Tar Heels’ quarterback play has been inconsistent.
Last season, UNC quarterbacks completed just 58.7% of their passes, tallying 2,917 yards and 18 touchdowns.
In contrast, Iamaleava impressed last season with a 63.8% completion rate, throwing for 2,616 yards, 19 touchdowns, and five interceptions.
His strong play helped propel Tennessee to the College Football Playoff, including four touchdown passes in each of the final two regular-season games.
Iamaleava clearly overplayed his hand by asking for an NIL raise to $4 million per season. It’s hard to imagine any program agreeing to that number now, especially with the way things have shook out.
Most insiders now believe that a move out west – possibly to UCLA or USC – is the controversial quarterback’s most likely route.
It will be interesting to see if the Oregon Ducks poke around on Iamaleava, especially after head coach Dan Lanning reportedly blew the whistle on Nico’s back-room dealings.
With Belichick’s Tar Heels now out of the mix, where do you think Iamaleava will end up???
