So far, Tennessee football’s spring camp has gone smoothly. The offense is apparently doing nicely, with new playmakers on the outside stepping up and making plays, while the defense attempts to regain form.
With recent news about Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee’s offense may face a setback.
According to On3 Sports and Pete Nakos, Tennessee and Nico have resumed contract negotiations in preparation for the Spring transfer portal window.
NEW: Tennessee and Nico Iamaleava are in active contract negotiations ahead of the 2025 season,
It is unknown whether the negotiations will have an impact on his ability to enter the spring transfer portal.
Nico will attempt to enter the portal for the second time since the end of the 2024 season as part of his negotiations with the Tennessee football program.
According to the article, Nico is content at Tennessee and has a good relationship with Josh Heupel, but he wants to add to his existing NIL offering ahead of his sophomore season.
Nico threw for 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns during his first year. He was consistent for Tennessee and demonstrated that he may be the guy on Rocky Top for the next two years if he improves on his early success.
However, it appears that he is hoping to profit on his consistency ahead of the 2025 season, joining quarterbacks across the country who are still cashing in on NIL paydays.
While Nico’s connection with the coaching staff is positive, and he is content at Tennessee, he may still enter the transfer portal if he does not receive the deal he seeks during NIL negotiations.
He knows several programs will be looking for a quarterback via the transfer portal and will have the NIL’s support to sign Nico at the price he’s looking for.
The Vols have done a good job of navigating the new era of college football with NIL and the transfer portal, but a stumbling block in Nico’s discussions might cost the Vols their future quarterback and the players who join him in the portal.
Nico wants to have a new NIL contract by the Orange and White Game on Saturday. The game is slated for April 12 at 2:00 PM ET in Neyland Stadium. The game will not be broadcast, but you can listen to it live on Vol Network’s family of stations.
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