Five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava has narrowed his choices to five and while there is not a rock-solid date on his commitment, his father said it could come once Iamaleava feels he’s ready.
Only one five-star quarterback out of four in the 2023 class is committed as Los Alamitos, Calif., star Malachi Nelson has already picked USC.
The No. 1 player in the class, New Orleans (La.) Isidore Newman’s Arch Manning, Detroit (Mich.) Martin Luther King five-star Dante Moore and Iamaleava remain uncommitted.
There could be some jostling among SEC superpowers as Iamaleava is fresh off another visit to Tennessee while Manning visits Georgia this weekend as the Bulldogs are squarely in his recruitment. Alabama is rarely left out in the cold so the Crimson Tide cannot be counted out for an elite QB, either.
In today’s Ranking The Contenders, we take a look at the top schools on Iamaleava’s list and determine which program has the best shot at landing him.
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1. TENNESSEE
The Volunteers have jumped out to frontrunner status in Iamaleava’s recruitment and it would be something of a surprise now if he ended up elsewhere. Iamaleava took another visit to Knoxville recently and had a phenomenal time there and upon his return a lot of people around him made it seem like Tennessee was going to be the spot.
Iamaleava has talked about going someplace where he could thrive (Josh Heupel’s pass-happy offense makes sense) and where he was loved. Perhaps no fan base has embraced the five-star quarterback like at Tennessee. There are also reportedly significant NIL considerations that could play a factor here.
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2. OREGON
Oregon was something of a dream school growing up, the Marcus Mariota connection and now the new coaching staff from Dan Lanning to Kenny Dillingham and beyond intrigues Iamaleava. Plus the Ducks have recruited so well in recent years talent would not be a problem.
There is also the factor as Iamaleava’s recruitment wears on that Oregon is much closer to home so family and friends would be able to travel easily to home games and he’d be playing in California relatively often as well. There has been a lot of talk that Iamaleava is heavily leaning to playing in the SEC but maybe playing for a coach with SEC experience and a national title when he was a defensive coordinator would suffice.
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3. ALABAMA
This is where things get really interesting because Iamaleava knows full well about coach Nick Saban’s success and he’s closely watched Bryce Young - another California five-star quarterback - go to Tuscaloosa and thrive. Playing on the biggest stage is something Iamaleava says he craves and so there is none bigger than this.
Plus, he would be entering a wide-open quarterback race most likely after this season. But there are other quarterback situations going on as well as Alabama is still battling for Manning and trying to flip Eli Holstein so juggling a bunch of high-level situations is in play here.
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4. GEORGIA
Two things seem to be of particular interest here: First, it felt like Georgia could have been the landing spot for Iamaleava if Tennessee did not completely blow him away on many levels. Secondly, the Bulldogs could feel pretty good about landing Manning (Texas and many others remain in the running). No one is saying Georgia would prefer Manning over Iamaleava but if that coaching staff feels strongly about one and not sure they’re going to get the other, then some writing is on the wall.
Iamaleava wants a big stage, wants SEC football and the Bulldogs certainly offer both.
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5. MIAMI
Iamaleava liked his trip to Miami and seems to fit not only the vibe of the city and the whole South Beach scene but connects well with coach Mario Cristobal and what he’s trying to do by bringing The U back.
That all looks like a very solid situation but Iamaleava might not visit again, that is still being decided. If the five-star is going back to Tennessee in April and not anywhere else, then it’s tough to see the Hurricanes pulling this one off. Counting Cristobal out is foolish, though, because he proved at Oregon he can recruit anybody from anywhere.
