QB Nico Iamaleava returning to UCLA for 2026 season
Ever since UCLA’s season quickly fell apart three games into a winless start, the idea of quarterback Nico Iamaleava staying in Westwood beyond the 2025 campaign looked bleak.
New incoming head coach Bob Chesney, who was hired and formally introduced two weeks ago, wasted little time making his first truly big splash and answering any questions about being able to connect with Southern California products.
Iamaleava, a Long Beach native who transferred to UCLA from Tennessee last season, re-signed to return to the Bruins for the 2026 season in a move first reported by On3’s Hayes Fawcett. UCLA then quickly made the news official minutes later Monday.
“NO PLACE LIKE HOME,” Iamaleava wrote on Instagram in a post accompanied by his highlights this past season and his own voice emphasizing the importance of being close to home.
The decision remained in line with Iamaleava’s initial reasons for leaving Tennessee prior to his redshirt sophomore season. The move came with plenty of backlash for the timing and manner in which he left prior to the Volunteers’ spring game in April.
Iamaleava seeks bounce-back year
This past season, Iamaleava completed 64.4% of his pass attempts and threw for 1,928 yards and 13 touchdowns with seven interceptions. The dual-threat star also ran for a team-high 505 yards and four touchdowns, but a large part of the production with his legs was out of necessity.
Iamaleava’s signature performance was a five-touchdown game while leading the previously winless Bruins to a 42-37 upset victory over then-No. 7 Penn State in October. It ignited a three-game winning streak after UCLA fired former head coach DeShaun Foster and parted ways with coordinators Ikaika Malloe and Tino Sunseri.
It was after the Penn State victory when Iamaleava revealed that he challenged his teammates after opening the season 0-4.
“I just was preaching to the guys that you know, ‘If y’all don’t want to be here, man, leave man,’” Iamaleava said, referencing the transfer portal. “I was basically telling the guys that, you know, whoever still believes that we’re still in this, and that we still got games ahead of us.”
Nobody on the roster entered the portal during the season.
Iamaleava played behind an offensive line that struggled to consistently protect him, and he missed one game with a concussion toward the end of a season he took his share of big hits while also seeking out contact while on the run.
The passing numbers were a step back after posting 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns with five interceptions while helping Tennessee qualify for the College Football Playoff in 2024.
Now, Iamaleava will look for better results under Chesney and incoming offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy, who has been on the new UCLA head coach’s staff the past four years between stops at Holy Cross and most recently James Madison.
The Bruins will be in search of their own collective improvement after finishing second to last in the Big Ten in scoring (18.2 points per game) in the 18-team league.
Rivals West Coast recruiting analyst Greg Biggins learned that Iamaleava and his family met with Chesney when he flew to Los Angeles for his introductory press conference earlier this month and have spoken with him multiple times leading up to Iamaleava’s decision to return.