UCLA football coach DeShaun Foster breaks down signing of Nico Iamaleava after departure from Tennessee.
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UCLA Coach Explains Decision to Sign Nico Iamaleava After Departure From Tennessee
Deshaun Foster spoke to the media about adding Nico Iamaleava for the first time.
Nico Iamaleava officially committed to play football at UCLA last week, returning to his home state after spending his first two seasons of college football at Tennessee. Iamaleava entered the transfer portal after skipping Tennessee's practice the day before the team’s spring game, and coach Josh Heupel announced the following day they planned to move on.
Reports indicated that Iamaleava was looking for a greater NIL deal at Tennessee, but Bruins head coach Deshaun Foster told reporters that returning to California and being closer to family led to Iamaleava choosing to join UCLA. Foster did characterize Iamaleava's NIL deal as a "success," but did not provide any further specifics on the terms.
As for UCLA adding Iamaleava, Foster called the opportunity one the team could not turn down. "Being able to bring in the No. 1 player in the portal, just something we couldn't pass up," Foster said.
“6'6", this is a big guy,” Foster said. “A true competitor. Fiery. Big arm. And then, it’s gonna—keeping the California kids and L.A. kids here, you know? This is a big thing.”
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Foster emphasized that Iamaleava is an important addition for the team. For one, he wants to land local talent and recruits, a goal he's emphasized since UCLA hired him as head coach. Bringing in Iamaleava also put a greater spotlight on the Bruins, who are still looking to make their mark in the Big Ten.
“You want to be in conversations, you want to play big-time ball,
you want to have haters, you want all of this stuff,” Foster said, “because that means that you’re trending in the right direction. So, if you want to play big-time ball, you can do that here at UCLA. I got a quarterback situation that’s gonna pan out for us.”
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Just sayin': Yeah, the reality is that having "haters" is a very good thing. It means that the other team's fans are jealous of your success.
