No matter what, we were going to spend much of this year's college football season comparing the Tennessee Volunteers and UCLA Bruins quarterback situations. The latter picked up Nico Iamaleava in his reportedly NIL-induced flight from Knoxville. The former hoped to find a replacement capable of showing up Iamaleava in every possible way. The QB they got turned out to be the funniest of all options.
Former UCLA quarterback Joey Aguilar, welcome to Tennessee.
According to ESPN's Chris Low, Aguilar is set to sign with Tennessee after being effectively forced out of Los Angeles by Iamaleava. Originally an Appalachian State transfer, the redshirt senior was the favorite to win UCLA's starting job. Now he'll be competing for to become the Volunteer's starter when fall camp rolls around.
The QB trade is complete. Joey Aguilar plans to sign with Tennessee after transferring to UCLA from App. State in the winter portal, sources tell ESPN. He trades places with Nico Iamaleava, who transferred from Tennessee to UCLA in the current portal. Back to business as usual.
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) April 21, 2025
Who won the trade Tennessee-UCLA trade of Nico Iamaleava and Joey Aguilar?
The winner of this particular trade is in the eye of the beholder, to be honest. There are things to like and dislike about each quarterback and situation.
Iamaleava leaves a College Football Playoff team for one that overachieved by winning five games last season. The Bruins did add Indiana co-offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri, a coach known for developing quarterbacks. But he's tasked with taking over an offense that averaged 18.4 points per game. UCLA is replacing their top two receivers and top two running backs.
In Iamaleava, UCLA gets a highly-touted quarterback with obvious talent. His actual production just left something to be desired at times with a 145.3 passer rating in 2024. He'll be an upgrade on last year's starter Ethan Garbers. The question is whether the team and staff around him will be able to maximize his talent.
Meanwhile, Aguilar climbed the ladder from Sun Belt to (briefly) Big Ten to SEC in the span of an offseason. He'll be the favorite to take the reins in Knoxville, where he'll have to prove quickly he can handle the rigors of SEC play. Tennessee expects to be right back in the hunt for a CFP berth even though they too are replacing their top three receivers and lead running back.
Josh Heupel can at least point to years of offensive success in the SEC. He's finished in the top two in the conference in scoring offense in three of four seasons at the helm.
Aguilar started the last two seasons at App State, throwing for more than 3,000 yards each year. His junior numbers were better than his senior ones, with drops in QB rating (151.6 to 132.9), completion percentage (.637 to .559) and touchdowns (33 to 23). He threw more interceptions too (10 to 14)
In 2024, Iamaleava got a 78.3 grade from Pro Football Focus. Aguilar got a 71.9
So let's sum it up this way: UCLA will have the better quarterback. Tennessee will have the better situation. We'll see which one matters most.