The Cowboys Are A Mess, The Bills Are Super Bowl Or Bust
The Tennessee Volunteers are one step closer to landing program-changing recruit Nico Iamaleava.
Iamaleava, a five-star quarterback from California, has had his name tossed around with the Tennessee Volunteers quite a bit after a successful visit to Knoxville last weekend. Now, it looks like Josh Heupel’s hard work is paying off with the quarterback announcing his official Top 5 on Wednesday night.
According to his own post on Twitter, Iamaleava’s final five are Georgia, Oregon, Alabama, Tennessee, and Miami.
n e x t s t o p i s h o m e 🙏🏽#TOABOYZ pic.twitter.com/Oc2Q3KtT2u
— 🇼🇸Nicholaus Iamaleava Jr.🇦🇸 (@nico_iamaleava8) March 17, 2022
Iamaleava is currently ranked as the fifth-ranked player in the class of 2023, the third-ranked quarterback in the class, and the second-ranked player from the state of California by On3 Sports’ consensus rankings.
The five-star quarterback was in Knoxville for an official visit from Mar. 10 to 13 and received quite a lot of love from the Tennessee fanbase. During the final home game of the Tennessee basketball season, the Vols’ student section rained down chants of “We Want Nico” just a few feet away from him.
If Tennessee is able to land Nico Iamaleava, he would instantly become Tennessee’s fifth-highest recruit in program history and the second-highest in the last decade. However, Iamaleava’s spot as a quarterback (as opposed to defensive lineman Kahlil McKenzie) may just be enough to make him the biggest recruit in Tennessee history. If he were to team up with Josh Heupel and his staff at Tennessee, Iamaleava’s speed, skill, and size will give Tennessee some much-needed firepower against the gauntlet that is the SEC.
Tennessee Recruiting: Why Nico Iamaleava is Tennessee’s Biggest Recruit in a Decade
Even though Tennessee was listed as one of five teams, the Vols are in the best position to land the highly-touted recruit.
As things stand on Thursday evening, Tennessee currently has all four Crystal Ball predictions from 247 Sports to land Iamaleava. In addition, On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has upped Tennessee’s chances up to 95.2 percent – no other team has more than a one percent chance.
On Monday, a report from 562 Sports stated that Iamaleava, heading into his senior and final season in high school, will be transferring for his senior year. Iamaleava will be moving from Warren High School to Long Beach Polytechnic High School, where he played ball his freshman year. With a collegiate commitment on Iamaleava’s horizon, the five-star quarterback is completing his high school journey full circle.
