Back in April, Nico Iamaleava missed Josh Heupel’s spring practice, and that sealed his deal with the Vols. The Vols gave a cold farewell, with a proud ‘No one is bigger than the T’ flashing at the peaks of the Rocky Top. However, his UCLA gamble has turned into a tragedy. His Bruins’ head coach, DeSean Foster, has been fired, and his future is spiraling.

The Bruins have been unsuccessful in getting their season going for the past three weeks. Any hopes of a revival with Nico under the center failed. The Week 3 humiliation came at home to New Mexico, and the decision-makers had seen enough. Foster was let go three games into his second season. On his part, Iamaleava didn’t help his head coach. In his three starts, he threw for just 607 yards. Three TDs, but at the same time, three interceptions.

Now that the head coach has been let go, the entire roster must make a decision. Do they stick with the Bruins or enter the portal? Due to Foster’s firing just three games into the season, UCLA players will have a 30-day window to make their moves. The window starts on Monday. Interestingly, since the Bruins have only played three games, the players will have the option to redshirt this year.

But Nico will not have that option. The Long Beach native has already utilized his redshirt privilege at Rocky Top. Moving to a third program is definitely an option at this moment. To make matters worse, Nico’s replacement at the Vols has already won over the fan base. Joey Aguilar has had a stellar start to his Tennessee career. Although the Vols lost their Week 3 game to the Bulldogs, Aguilar impressed by torching down a Kirby Smart defense. The Vols QB1 is doing this with the same O-line and receivers that Nico’s camp said were not good enough earlier this year.

As per On3, both quarterbacks take in a similar NIL pay range. Both are cashing in a $1.2 million range. Although if Nico could have still been with the Vols, he would have been churning out a $2.5 million figure. But another report by On3, which lists the top 20 highest CFB NIL valuations for 2025, shows Nico’s valuation at $2 million. So all those demands, but he’s earning less.

Some people might deem it karma for how Nico’s camp treated Tennessee. Looking ahead, can he go to an SEC program? Most offenses are settled at this point, and the ones that are not have little to do with the QB position. So, a tough few weeks ahead for the Bruins QB1.

DeShaun Foster issues a statement on his firing

DeShaun Foster’s mantra, D.R.E.: Discipline, respect, and enthusiasm, was his philosophy. That didn’t show in his coaching. The UCLA Bruins lost to Utah, UNLV, and New Mexico, a disastrous start to their 2025 campaign. Over the three games, the roster was barely able to scrape off 16.5 average points per game, along with being placed in the No. 115 spot out of the 133 teams in the FBS. The offense? Ranked 101st in the country, with the defense looming close in the 111th spot.

“Serving as the head coach at UCLA, my beloved alma mater, has been the honor of a lifetime,” Foster said after his firing. “While I am deeply disappointed that we were unable to achieve the success that our players, fans, and university deserve, I am grateful for the opportunity to have led this program,” he added.

Foster took over as the head coach on February 12, 2024, leading the program to 5-10 overall record. From 2017 to 2023, he was the running backs coach at the Bruins and earned the title of associate head coach in 2023 as well. As for the head coach situation at the Bruins presently, special assistant to the head coach, Tim Skipper, will serve as the interim head coach.