Teammates talk Jayden Maiava, highlights of UNLV transfer QB

Georgia just landed UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava at quarterback, and the Bulldogs are getting a good one. Winner of the Mountain West Freshman of the Year award, Maiava threw for 3,085 yards on 224-of-353 (63.5%) passing with 17 touchdowns. He also added 277 yards and three scores on the ground.

Maiva, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound native of Las Vegas, redshirted in his first season on campus with the Rebels. He then took over the starting job in Week 4 of the 2023 campaign after a big day versus Vanderbilt, leading UNLV to a win over the SEC opponent. He threw for 261 yards in the victory with a touchdown and an interception in relief of the Rebels’ starter, injured in the first quarter.

With Maiava at the helm, UNLV went 7-2 to close out the regular season and earned a spot in the Mountain West Championship Game. The Rebels fell to Boise State there and Kansas in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. Still, the takeover by Maiava and job he did was impressive.

Maiava’s top game statistically came against New Mexico, throwing for three touchdowns and 247 yards with no interceptions. His season-high yardage total came against Colorado State, completing 27 of 36 passes for 353 yards. Maiava topped 250 yards in six games including twice over the 300-yard threshold.

Teammates Talk Maiava…

Prior to the Mountain West Championship Game, the conference did a feature on him and a teammate, wide receiver Ricky White. Below are a few on the top quotes on Maiava from teammates and his coach Barry Odom. The feature also shows several highlights from Maiava’s season.

WR Jacob De Jesus: “Having him at quarterback, knowing he could flip the switch from being serious to also being your friend, being funny. Seeing that calmness in him on the field, it’s cool.”

RB Donavyn Lester: “He’s had some mistakes in the game, but to see the way he bounces back from those mistakes, from a young individual, his freshman year, that’s been very impressive.”

LB Marsel McDuffie: “He’s taken our team’s confidence to an all time high. Any time you’re young like he is, to be put in the position he is, it might overwhelm them. Not him. He’s got a little moxie to him, got a little swagger in him. He just came in, acted like he’s been the starter for four years with the way he carried himself. He’s a very humble kid. He goes about his business. He’s all about the work, and he just wants to win. When you have a quarterback that’s the leader of the team, it trickles down to everybody else who just follows his lead.”

White: “He’s young, so a kid is going to be a kid. A young man is going to be a young man, but when it’s time to work, he’s definitely going to lock in and work … Me and Jayden have a strong connection. We built chemistry throughout the summer leading up to the season, even last year when he was the backup quarterback we still had connection. I feel like we kept throwing to each other, running game routes and that chemistry builded throughout the summer. When he got that chance to start come game time, it was already there … It’s great having him as a leader, as our QB. I feel like he brings the feel we need and the leader that we need in our offense really.”

Odom: “He prepared exactly the same way from the day we got here, preparing to be the starter. He knew at that position he was a play away from becoming that.”

Maiava was also interviewed for the video and came across as confident. He also presented himself as prepared for whatever role is asked of him.

“I just like to see everybody smiling. That’s really my thing. I don’t like seeing anybody with their head down. I just like to make everybody happy,” he shared. “… I may be the starting quarterback, but I still prepare like I’m the No. 2 quarterback. I just try not to get too far ahead of myself, and be who I’m supposed to be, be where my feet are.”

Maiava enters a Georgia quarterback room that features returning starter Carson Beck, plus a pair of talented youngsters in redshirt sophomore Gunner Stockton and true freshman Ryan Puglisi – both of whom were top 10 quarterbacks and top-150 players overall in their respective recruiting classes. Beck finished third in the country for passing yards in 2023, throwing for 3,941 yards on a school record 72.4% passing. He enters 2024 as FanDuel’s co-favorite for the Heisman Trophy.

For more highlights of Maiava, check out the following game-clips on YouTube:

UNLV vs. Nevada
UNLV vs. Vanderbilt
UNLV vs. Colorado State