5-star QB Nico Iamaleava invited to Elite 11 Finals

Long Beach (Calif.) Long Beach Poly five-star quarterback and Tennessee commit Nico Iamaleava has established himself as one of the 2023 cycle’s top recruits.

He further established that pedigree Sunday at the Elite 11 Regional in Nashville, Tenn. Iamaleava was one of three players to earn a spot at the Elite 11 Finals at the event along with Maize (Kan.) four-star quarterback Avery Johnson and Memphis (Tenn.) Lausanne Collegiate School three-star quarterback Brock Glenn.

Few invitations mean as much as the Elite 11 Finals do to high school quarterbacks. The event, which will celebrate its 23rd year in 2022, brings together the country’s elite signal-callers for four days of competition and training from former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer and a host of others.

Elite 11 alumni include Carson Palmer, Andrew Luck, Matthew Stafford, Tim Tebow, and more recently Trevor Lawrence, C.J. Stroud, Bryce Young and more. Last year’s Elite 11 Finals featured 13 of the top 20 quarterbacks in the final 2022 On3 Consensus Rankings, including each of the top six players at the position.

As invites go out over the next few months after Elite 11 Regionals across the country, we’re tracking the prospects who — barring injury or schedule conflict — will head to Los Angeles in late June and compete for the title of the country’s top quarterback in the 2023 class.

Nico Iamaleava 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.” — Charles Power, On3 Director of Scouting and Rankings