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Bob Chesney didn’t must go far to safe his most essential participant.
He was already on campus.
Nico Iamaleava has agreed to return to UCLA for subsequent season, giving the Bruins a top-level quarterback as a part of their new coach’s bid for a fast turnaround from a 3-9 season beneath his predecessor and an interim coach.
Iamaleava introduced his intentions on Instagram, posting a spotlight video alongside a caption studying, “NO PLACE LIKE HOME. Again with my brothers. Identical imaginative and prescient. Identical objectives. Identical grind. Locked in. Time to work!”
The doable advantages transcend bettering Iamaleava’s NFL draft inventory with a powerful season. One other essential plus may very well be the reputational enhance related to staying put after Iamaleava left Tennessee throughout spring follow in 2025 as a part of an emotionally charged falling out with the Volunteers that sparked widespread criticism.
Remaining a Bruin may also enable the redshirt junior to spend no less than yet another season on the identical staff as his brother Madden, who will likely be a redshirt freshman quarterback after showing on the finish of 1 sport final season.
None of UCLA’s struggles in 2025 may very well be blamed on its beginning quarterback. Consistently beneath duress from a go rush that met little resistance from his offensive line, Iamaleava was his staff’s main passer and rusher regardless of being sacked 27 instances.
Iamaleava accounted for 17 of his staff’s 24 touchdowns and led the Bruins with 10 performs of 20 yards or extra, all approaching the bottom. Though he wasn’t a prolific passer — his 255 yards by the air as a part of a livid comeback in opposition to Nevada Las Vegas had been a season excessive — Iamaleava’s potential to supply huge performs along with his arm and his legs offered an enormous downside for opposing defenses.
Iamaleava’s passing accuracy loved a slight uptick from his last season at Tennessee, the place he helped the Volunteers attain the Faculty Soccer Playoff. In his first season as a Bruin after returning house partially to be nearer to his household in Lengthy Seashore, Iamaleava accomplished 64.4% of his passes for 1,928 yards and 13 touchdowns with seven interceptions.
Whether or not he was scrambling out of the pocket or sprinting on designed quarterback runs, Iamaleava might need been hardest to cease when he planted his toes and took off. He led the staff with 505 dashing yards and 4 touchdowns in 112 carries, together with 128 yards and three touchdowns throughout a victory over then-No. 7 Penn State.
Equally essential was the management of a participant who unflinchingly met with the media after losses and challenged others. Amid the staff’s 0-4 begin, Iamaleava instructed teammates they might go away in the event that they didn’t wish to keep and assist spark a turnaround. Nobody did, and the staff went on to win its subsequent three video games.
Now Iamaleava is staying put, giving his coach an enormous constructing block as a part of his efforts to forge a sturdy basis.
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