The spring transfer portal window has created quite the shake-up from the UCLA side. The transfer portal creates a chance for players to leave in hopes of a better chance, a better opportunity, and perhaps most importantly, a fresh start. This was very abundant when it came to UCLA in both players coming and going.
After acquiring Nico Iamaleava via the transfer portal, Joey Aguilar decided to enter the transfer portal from UCLA. Aguilar realized Iamaleava is going to be the favorite to be the starter for UCLA and decided he would look elsewhere to play his senior year in.
Joey Aguilar and Nico Iamaleava’s College Football Stats Compared: 2023–2024 Seasons
Iamaleava is coming off his best season so far in college football. What makes it crazier is he’s only coming off his freshman season. Iamaleava spent his first two seasons with Tennessee. But after being a redshirt freshman in 2023, he saw his first time to shine in 2024.
In 2024, Iamaleava completed 213 passes of his 334 attempts. He threw for a whopping 2,616 yards and threw 19 touchdowns while only throwing five picks. He finished with a quarterback rating of 145.3, shining in just about every statistic. As for Aguilar, he’s on his way out of UCLA.
Aguilar transferred to UCLA after his 2024 season with Appalachian State. Aguilar spent the last two seasons with Appalachian State where he really began to shine as a quarterback. In 2023, Aguilar threw for 3,757 yards and 33 touchdowns while just throwing 10 interceptions.
However, he did see a step back in 2024 as he threw for 3,003 yards and 23 touchdowns, while throwing 14 interceptions. Ultimately, all of Aguilar’s numbers were down this season, except for his interception number, which was up by four. To make matters more interesting, Aguilar found his new team in the same team that Iamaleava transferred from, Tennessee.
On3 Sports’ JD PicKell spoke in depth about the transfer portal swap on the On3 Sports YouTube channel. “Aguilar is like Floor 13, Floor 14,” PicKell says. “You’re getting from Joey Aguilar right away with what he is as a college football player.”
“The guy can transfer from App State to UCLA, and the dude lit it up at App State. He’s the best thing to come out of the High Country since our very own Caden Smith. He has a single-season record at App State in passing touchdowns, passing yards, and total offense. Dude can play some football now, just to make that very, very clear.”
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This could go down in history as one of the best portal swaps in history, with neither team really feeling the loss of the other. Iamaleava is expected to take it up with UCLA, as for Aguilar, he can certainly have an equally impressive season with Tennessee.
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