The Trade: Joey Aguilar Embraces Tennessee Spotlight Against Georgia, As Nico Iamaleava Watches From Afar
After Nico Iamaleava’s transfer to UCLA, Joey Aguilar emerged as Tennessee’s unexpected leader — now he faces Georgia in a pivotal SEC clash.
There are quarterback competitions, and then there are monumental moments in college football that can change the direction of two different teams with one decision. That's the story which will be on display this weekend as Tennessee faces Georgia, with Joey Aguilar leading the Vols, while Nico Iamaleava probably watches from afar.
In this age of the transfer portal, just about anything can happen from a transaction standpoint, especially when you throw in the NIL component on top. For Joey Aguilar, he wasn't all too worried about the financial terms that led him to leaving Appalachian State for UCLA last winter.
No, this was about the opportunity to play just under five hours from home, growing up in Antioch, California. Sure, add on the fact that UCLA was now in the Big Ten, and playing inside the Rose Bowl in front of a sparse crowd was still entertaining enough to make the move from North Carolina to the West Coast.
Nico Iamaleava's Camp Says They Didn’t Steer Him In Wrong Direction, As Transfer Portal Opens
After playing a few years at the JUCO level, Aguilar transferred to App State, where he ended up turning heads in 2023, then following up in 2024 with enough flash that garnered an opportunity with the Bruins.
But nothing could've prepared him for what was to come during spring practice at UCLA, as he was meshing with his teammates, while also getting the chance to see his family more often.
Nico Iamaleava was about to enter the transfer portal after months of built-up conversations centered around his contract with the Tennessee football program, and their collective. Two days before the Vols were set to finish spring practice with their annual Orange & White game, Iamaleava decided that he would not show up at the facility, and subsequently enter the transfer portal.
If there was a poster child of what not to do in those situations, Nico Iamaleava would be on the cover. But then again, everything happens for a reason, which Joey Aguilar found out while sitting in his apartment just off UCLA's campus.
Everything Changed For Joey Aguilar Once Nico Entered Transfer Portal
In the days leading up to April 19th, the Aguilar camp started to hear the rumblings of Nico Iamalavea potentially transferring to UCLA, though quarterbacks on the roster were only seeing this on social media.
Bruins head coach DeShaun Foster was spearheading the recruitment of Nico, while Joey carried on with his business of learning the UCLA offense. It's not as if there was anything he could do about the situation. The tension was building in Westwood, though Aguilar was trying to keep a level head regarding rhe whole ordeal.
Joey Aguilar Signing With Tennessee, Basically Completing Nico Iamaleava Trade With UCLA
It wasn’t as if the news was being shared with him, and in all honesty, it's not the coach's job to tell every player about what could potentially be coming with Nico. But, there was still an uneasy feeling for Aguilar's camp, which multiple sources discussed with OutKick at the time.
It wasn’t until social media had run rampant with the potential news of Iamalaeva transferring to UCLA that it forced DeShaun Foster to have a conversation with Aguilar about the news. On April 20th, the Bruins head coach informed his transfer quarterback that the Nico news was real, and that ‘he was coming’.
Even though DeShaun Foster told Joey Aguilar that it would be a fair competition for the starting spot, he's not bringing in Iamalaeva to sit on the bench. The coaching staff knew it, and the Aguilar camp was not blind regarding the situation.
A decision had to be made. Aguilar's reps could've forced UCLA's hand with the contract that was signed. He could've stayed and fought for a job that he knew wasn’t going to be rewarded to him. What was he supposed to do?
It was time to make another decision, which would take him out of his home state of California, and back into the transfer portal. But, there was something very interesting that was about to take place, which was the first of its kind in college football.
Tennessee Completes Trade, Joey Aguilar Heads Back East
I know we've all seen some perplexing things regarding the transfer portal since its inception, but having two teams trade quarterbacks after spring practice has to be the most polarizing.
For the next seven days, Aguilar had conversations with a number of schools, but the situation in Tennessee was too enticing. Given that he had just transferred from App State not five months earlier, it wasn’t as if he was unfamiliar with the landscape around East Tennessee.
When Vols coach Josh Heupel says that ‘No player is bigger than the team’, he means it.
So, even though it was shocking to folks around the Tennessee facility when Nico started laying out breadcrumbs to a few teammates in the days prior to him not showing at a walk-through the day prior to the spring game, it was obvious that Tennessee was going to need another quarterback.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - AUGUST 30: Head coach Josh Heupel of the Tennessee Volunteers converses with Joey Aguilar #6 during the first half of the 2025 Aflac Kickoff Game between the Syracuse Orange and the Tennessee Volunteers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
As they say, the rest is history. While Nico Iamleava has so far put together pedestrian numbers at UCLA, Joey Aguilar is captivating the Tennessee crowd, even with the wins coming against Syracuse and ETSU.
But, it's not the on-field play that has garnered the support of fans clad in orange. He embraced the Tennessee fan base, along with making sure he put in the effort to win over his teammates. And while I imagine television networks that broadcast UCLA games have seen a spike in ratings for the State of Tennessee, the focus is on what could be, if the Vols were to beat Georgia on Saturday.
2016 was the last time the Vols had beaten Georgia, which weighs on the minds of folks inside the Tennessee football building, even if they are acting as if the past doesn't matter. But, just like we saw in 2022 when Tennessee finally defeated Alabama after fifteen straight losses, a win on Saturday would turn Neyland Stadium into a powder-keg.
And, if Joey Aguilar is the quarterback that leads the Vols to that win, he'll become a legend for Tennessee fans across the country for decades to come.
It's funny how things seem to work out, and now we wait to see what the next chapter of this saga looks like.