🏈 Nico's not leaving. Right?

On- and off-field storylines as Tennessee finishes spring practice

Author

Josh Ward
April 11, 2025

Hello. This is the Josh and Swain Newsletter, a quick roundup of the week’s top stories and topics involving Tennessee and the sports world.

Here’s what we have for you today:

  • Why Nico Iamaleava’s status with Tennessee became a topic on Thursday

  • A few players to watch in Saturday’s Orange & White Game

  • Tennessee basketball’s latest additions + a BIG name to watch

  • Tennessee found a new Power 4 opponent to play in 2026 and 2027

NICO AND THE VOLS

Expect Nico to be Tennessee’s QB this fall

An unexpected storyline developed on Thursday afternoon.

The subject: Nico Iamaleava’s ongoing contract negotiation with Tennessee. 

Contract negotiation? Doesn’t he already have a deal with the Vols… that pays him a lot of money?

Yes, he does. 

But it appears he wants a revised deal that will pay him more money. 

Pete Nakos reported the following for On3:

“In a move that many around the program expected, On3 has learned that Nico Iamaleava and Tennessee are in active negotiations on a new NIL deal ahead of the 2025 season. It remains unclear if those negotiations will impact Iamaleava’s decision regarding the spring transfer portal, which opens next week.

Sources have indicated that Nico Iamaleava is happy at Tennessee and has a strong relationship with head coach Josh Heupel. The Vols are trying to finalize a new contract before Saturday’s Orange-White spring game. 

The issue at hand is that Iamaleava’s multi-million dollar deal was one of the first large NIL contracts. The market has since adjusted significantly — especially at the quarterback position.

Multiple sources close to the situation indicate that Iamaleava’s current contract is somewhere between $2.2 to $2.5 million, a jump from the initial three-year deal that was reported in March 2022. At one point, Iamaleava was the highest-paid quarterback in the nation. 

Miami’s Carson Beck and Duke’s Darian Mensah both signed contracts this offseason worth more than $3 million annually. Michigan gave five-star freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood over $3 million per year, too.

The line that caught everyone’s eye: “It remains unclear if those negotiations will impact Iamaleava’s decision regarding the spring transfer portal, which opens next week.”

First, it would be quite surprising if Iamaleava left Tennessee this spring. 

Never say never in college sports — but no one expects him to leave Tennessee when the portal opens next week. 

Cordell Landers, a friend of the Iamaleava family, told CBS Sports that there is no negotiation and that the family is happy with Nico’s current contract.

So here’s a question: why did this come out?

Iamaleava’s status with Tennessee was a talking point in December. 

He flirted with the idea of entering the transfer portal, which reportedly played a role in wide receiver Mike Matthews considering a transfer. 

Remember this tweet from Nico’s father…

Iamaleava decided not to enter the portal in December, of course.

But here we are four months later talking about Iamaleava’s status again. 

CBS Sports included this note in its report on Thursday:

Why didn’t Iamaleava or someone from his family shoot down the On3 report immediately?

It would have been easy to do.

Nico’s father did post this on Twitter/X late Thursday night after the CBS Sports report came out:

If Iamaleava did ask for a new deal at UT (which multiple outlets have reported), would he be justified?

If you answer based on Nico’s on-field performance, no. 

His level of play has not matched his level of pay… at least to this point. 

But does Iamaleava have leverage to ask for more money?

Sure, and the current rules of college sports allow him (and his family) to use that leverage if he wants. 

That doesn’t make it the right decision, either. 

Fans can agree or disagree on whether Iamaleava should receive a pay increase. 

But no one will argue that this kind of story is good for college football.

In April, fans want to hear about their team’s development and potential for the upcoming season. 

Not an ongoing contract negotiation for a college player who’s already made millions of dollars. 

Tennessee fans have also asked why this kind of story has gone public multiple times in the last few months. 

Rickey Gibson’s desire for a new deal was a topic before spring practice began. 

That’s been resolved, as were the agreements with Matthews and Boo Carter in December. 

Players wanting more money will result in fans raising expectations. 

After all, fans help pay the players through donations to the school’s collective and talent fees attached to ticket prices.

When the school’s quarterback asks for more money, fans will demand better results on the field. 

Also know: every school deals with players wanting more money.

But that doesn’t mean every player handles it the same way.

Iamaleava has a leadership role on Tennessee’s football team.

He’s a face of the program entering his third season at UT.

So how he handles this situation will receive all kinds of attention.

The people around Nico haven’t helped the way he’s viewed in this story.

Now would be a good time for Nico to handle things himself.

Every athlete has that choice now.

TENNESSEE’S SPRING ‘GAME’

Peyton Lewis steps into a bigger role at running back for Tennessee

There’s still football on the field to focus on.

Tennessee will close the spring on Saturday with the Orange & White Game at Neyland Stadium.

This won’t be a full game, and plenty of starters will either sit or play limited snaps before calling it a day.

But there will be plenty of individual players to keep an eye on.

Here’s a list of players to watch (with a disclaimer that we don’t know exactly who will play and how much):

🟠 Young wide receivers

They’re all eligible for the “who to watch” discussion. 

This group will play a big role in how Tennessee’s season goes this fall. 

Sophomore Mike Matthews could be the leader of the group. 

“He’s the one we’re going to count on,” Tennessee receivers coach Kelsey Pope said this week.

Let’s see what Braylon Staley can do (assuming he participates).

And freshmen Travis Smith and Radarious Jackson have drawn positive reviews from practice. 

Will one of them make a play this weekend?

🟠 Peyton Lewis and DeSean Bishop

Lewis and Bishop are the new leaders at running back with Dylan Sampson gone. 

Don’t expect one player to replace Sampson’s production. 

But the group should have another big season in Josh Heupel’s offense. 

Bishop and Lewis are good athletes who saw valuable playing time in 2024.

Let’s see how different UT’s running backs look this spring.

🟠 LB Edwin Spillman

Arion Carter is out this spring, as are Tennessee’s freshman signees at linebacker. 

That’s created plenty of practice reps for Spillman, a four-star prospect in the 2024 class. 

How does Spillman look — and can he make a run at a starting spot this fall?

He’ll have an opportunity to show us on Saturday. 

🟠 Boo Carter

Carter has been another big topic this spring. 

He played an important role in the secondary as a freshman. 

Now, he’s practicing at DB and wide receiver. 

“That guy’s a thrill a minute,” Austin Price of Volquest said on Thursday’s show.

Let’s see how involved Carter is on Saturday. 

That applies to defense, offense and special teams.

🟠 The quarterbacks 

Iamaleava is a given for however long he’s on the field. 

Next up: Jake Merklinger. 

The second-year quarterback has made strides since he arrived on campus. 

He’s the clear backup with Gaston Moore gone.

Freshman George MacIntyre will be worth watching, too. 

But don’t judge him based on how Saturday goes.

MacIntyre will need time to improve — just as Merklinger has reportedly done over the last 12 months.   

SPORTS NUGGETS

🏈 Here’s gameday info for Tennessee’s spring game on Saturday.

🏈 Former Ohio State QB Will Howard called Tennessee’s players clowns for warming up shirtless before their playoff game in December.

🏈 The NCAA’s House settlement still has a few steps to be taken. Here’s the latest from Ross Dellenger.

🏈 Andy Staples ranked the nation’s top 10 quarterbacks and did not include Iamaleava. This recent ranking from ESPN put Nico at No. 8.

🏀 Former Villanova star Kris Jenkins sued the NCAA last week for limiting athlete pay and restricting his ability to capitalize of his name, image and likeness.

🏀 JT Toppin will return to Texas Tech next season and will reportedly earn close to $4 million.

🏌️‍♂️ Rory McIlroy was having a great first day at The Masters… until he wasn’t. Justin Rose leads and is three shots ahead of Ludvig Aberg, Corey Conners and Scottie Scheffler.

⚾ Here’s a series preview for Tennessee at Ole Miss, the No. 6 ranked team in the country.

🥎 Tennessee’s softball team will play a big series on the road against No. 1 ranked Texas.

PORTAL WATCH

Vandy transfer Jaylen Carey adds intensity to Tennessee’s roster

Tennessee basketball had a good week in the transfer portal. 

After last week’s newsletter published, Tennessee received a commitment from Maryland point guard transfer Ja’Kobi Gillespie. 

The Greeneville, Tenn., native was the Vols’ top target, and they landed him. 

Then Tennessee added Vanderbilt forward Jaylen Carey, who played great in Vandy’s two games against Tennessee this season. 

Carey averaged 8 points and 5.7 rebounds a game for Vandy this season. 

Against Tennessee: Carey averaged 16 points and 8.5 rebounds.

VFL Ron Slay of ESPN and the SEC Network told us this week that Carey was one of Slay’s favorite SEC players to watch this season. 

“When he came in the game, Vanderbilt’s mentality totally shifted. And when he went out of the game, you could tell he was out of the game. The rebounding was big. Him being able to have a knack of scoring down low… it will be interesting to see how he expands his game offensively with Coach Barnes.

I think that’s something we’ve been missing — being able to give it to a guy right there on the post that can command a mismatch, whether they’re taller or smaller than him.”

Carey is “Boom Boom Room” certified by Slay, which is something the Vols have lacked in the last couple of seasons.

So what’s next for Tennessee?

Keep an eye on Maryland guard Rodney Rice, who’s scheduled to visit Tennessee this weekend. 

Gillespie has made it clear he wants Rice to join him at Tennessee. 

And for good reason. 

Rice averaged 13.8 points and shot 37.4 percent from three at Maryland this past season. 

Rick Barnes and his staff would love to add Maryland’s Sweet 16 backcourt to the program.

Rice listed six schools that he’s considering: Tennessee, Maryland, Villanova, Auburn, Southern Cal and Gonzaga.

There will be other names to watch. 

One of them: Nate Ament, a 6-9 forward and top-5 overall player in the 2025 high school class. 

Duke, Kentucky, Louisville and Arkansas are all in the running — and different reports offer different feelings on his recruitment. 

But Tennessee is pushing hard to land Ament. 

Travis Branham of 247Sports said this week he believes Tennessee is No. 2 and “has made up some ground” to Duke, which has a “slight edge at this moment.”

Austin Price also told us Thursday he believes Duke and Tennessee are the top two teams for Ament. 

Can the Vols beat out the Blue Devils for Ament?

Rick Barnes and his staff will make every effort. 

So will Gillespie, who’s said he will help try to get Ament to Knoxville. 

Ament’s a prospect who’s worth trying for. 

BUZZ FOR TENNESSEE

Tennessee will play in Atlanta in 2026. Will the Vols be at Bobby Dodd Stadium?

Tennessee has found a replacement for the canceled series with Nebraska in 2026 and 2027.

And the good news: the Vols replaced it with another home-and-home series.

Tennessee will play at Georgia Tech in 2026* with the Yellow Jackets returning to Knoxville in 2027.

(*Note: the 2026 game could be at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium or the Falcons’ Mercedes-Benz Stadium. That’s to be determined.)

Tennessee AD Danny White issued this statement with the news of the Georgia Tech series:

"After Nebraska canceled the series, our main focus was to secure another home-and-home matchup with an opponent from a Power Four conference, which seemed improbable at the time.

I sincerely appreciate Athletic Director J Batt's creativity in modifying Georgia Tech's schedule to make this series possible. We look forward to seeing plenty of orange in Atlanta in 2026!”

White made sure to let everyone know it was Nebraska who canceled the series.

By the way, kudos to Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets already had games scheduled against Georgia and Colorado in 2026 and Georgia and Notre Dame in 2027.

But Georgia Tech signed up to play Tennessee as well.

As one Josh and Swain listener wrote to us, Georgia Tech-Tennessee is an “OG series.”

Tennessee leads the all-time series with Georgia Tech, 25-17-2.

They’ll play for the first time since Tennessee beat Georgia Tech 42-41 in double overtime at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to open the 2017 season.

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