Tennessee 5-star QB commit Nico Iamaleava earns second win of senior season

Long Beach (Calif.) Warren five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava notched the second win of his senior season on Friday night as the Bears defeated Whittier (Calif.) La Serna 32-26. According to Anthony Ciardelli, Iamaleava threw for 173 yards, three touchdowns and an interception on 14-of-22 attempts. The five-star recruit also ran for a score.

Iamaleava, who threw for roughly 210 yards and two touchdowns in a season-opening victory over Kamehameha Kapalama (Hi.) on Aug. 14, tossed a pick-six in the first quarter that put the contest at six apiece.

Warren eventually fell behind 16-6, but Iamaleava — who tossed a touchdown prior to his interception –orchestrated a scoring drive just before halftime. He connected with his receiver on a touchdown that cut La Serna’s lead to three.

Early in the second half, Iamaleava threw another touchdown to put Warren up 20-16. The Bears eventually extended their lead to 10 after Iamaleava scored on the ground.

Warren led by as many as 16, but La Serna scored 10 unanswered points. However, the Bears held on for the victory, in part due to Iamaleava’s performance.

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Iamaleava is the No. 7 overall prospect and the No. 4 quarterback in the 2023 On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is also the No. 2 player in California. 

On3 rates the five-star prospect even higher. Iamaleava is the No. 2 overall recruit, No. 2 quarterback and No. 1 player in California in the 2023 On300.

A 6-foot-5.5, 195 pound prospect, Iamaleava is the highest-rated recruit in Tennessee’s 2023 recruiting class. The Volunteers’ group ranks No. 13 in the 2023 On3 Consensus Team Recruiting Rankings and No. 5 in the SEC.

Iamaleava has demonstrated his talent on the football field on multiple occasions. One of them was this summer at Overtime’s OT7 seven-on-seven league. He was named On3 MVP for his performance.

“Nico Iamaleava looked like the clear top quarterback – and perhaps overall prospect – over the course of the weekend at OT7,” On3 Director of Scouting and Rankings Charles Power wrote. “The Tennessee commit missed the action on Thursday, but was a standout performer over the tournament’s final three days. Iamaleava looked like a natural in the 7-on-7 setting. His physical gifts are well-documented, but were still palpable when placed on the same field with other blue-chip prospects.”

Nico Iamaleava On3 Scouting Summary 

“High-upside signal caller who may have the best physical tools among quarterbacks in the 2023 cycle. Has one of the stronger arms in the cycle, generating considerable velocity on his throws in camp settings. Tall with a slender build with room to fill out. Boasts a quick, clean throwing motion despite his longer arms. A bouncy, fluid mover who doubles as a top volleyball player. 

“Still developing in terms of some technical aspects of the game. Plays in a high school offense that is heavily skewed towards quick passes and screens. Can continue to improve his accuracy on downfield passes. Has done a very good job taking care of the football with just two interceptions in his first two varsity seasons.”

Iamaleava has an On3 NIL Valuation of $1M. The On3 NIL Valuation is an index that looks to set the standard market value for both high school and college-level athletes. The NIL valuation does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals an athlete has completed to date. It rather signifies an athlete’s value at a certain moment in time.