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Nico Iamaleava's Younger Brother Finalizes His Transfer Decision

Originally posted on The Spun | By Andrew Gould | Last updated Apr 22, 2025 12:25 PM ET

Madden Iamaleava took a step toward joining his brother at UCLA.

On Monday, Nico Iamaleava confirmed his commitment to UCLA after leaving Tennessee. The quarterback sat out spring practice while reportedly seeking an NIL raise from $2.2 million to $4 million.

Later on Monday, ESPN's Chris Low reported that Nico's younger brother, Madden, planned to follow him to the Bruins. According to multiple reports, Madden officially entered the transfer portal on Tuesday.

UCLA fans may feel deja vu, as Madden Iamaleava committed to the program last May. The four-star quarterback recruit flipped his decision to Arkansas on National Signing Day.

His move apparently didn't hurt the family's standing with UCLA, as Nico joined the Big Ten squad. UCLA and Tennessee swapped starting quarterbacks, as Joey Aguilar later transferred to Josh Heupel's program.

"To the amazing people in Knoxville, thank you for embracing and uplifting me throughout my time there, Nico wrote on Instagram. "I'll be forever thankful for the support you showed me every step of the way and I'll always cherish the relationships I built there and the memories I created with my brothers. I believe with all my heart that I gave my all as a Volunteer. I'm truly grateful for the time I had at UT."

UCLA head coach Deshaun Foster spoke to reporters shortly before Madden entered the portal, so he didn't confirm that pickup. However, he said Madden's decommittment didn't hinder the process of adding Nico.

"I wouldn't say so. It was more of just communicating, talking to each other," Foster said, per Tracy McDannald of Bruin Blitz. "And once he was in the portal, just going from there."

Foster celebrated the "good buzz" around his program following the marquee acquisition. He considered it important to land big local recruits to make UCLA a destination program.

“You want to be in conversations. You want to play big-time ball," Foster said. "You want to have haters. You want all this stuff because that means that you’re trending in the right direction, so if you want to play big-time ball, you can do that at UCLA."

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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