Andy & Ari On3 - CFB TRADE: Tennessee Vols & UCLA Swap Nico Iamaleava, Joey Aguilar

Episode Date: April 21, 2025

We’re excited to announce we’ll be hosting Andy & Ari On3 LIVE from the Draft in Green Bay on Thursday, April 24 and Friday, April 25! We’ll be set up right outside the famous Frozen Tundra of Lambeau Field at the Culver’s Great Wisconsin Tailgate. Born in Wisconsin, Culver’s is the home of the legendary ButterBurger, Fresh Frozen Custard and Wisconsin Cheese Curds—there’s no better representation of America’s Dairyland than that. We’ll have some very special guests throughout the Draft that you won’t want to miss, so stay tuned for more details and get ready for a weekend of fun, made fresh with our friends at Culver’s: https://go.culvers.com/culvers/sAkHC(0:00-4:39) Andy & Ari react to Joey Aguilar to Tennessee(4:40-5:50) Madden Iamaleava enters the portal(5:51-14:33) Who won the trade?(14:33-15:25) Culver's(15:26-22:49) Will Joey Aguilar be a hero in Knoxville? With QB Joey Aguilar headed from UCLA to Tennessee, it appears we have the first (unofficial) transfer portal trade in college football history. Former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava announced his transfer to UCLA on Sunday. Aguilar, who had come to UCLA this offseason after two years as Appalachian State’s starter, suddenly found himself without a job. On Monday evening, Aguilar committed to Tennessee. The 30 for 30 just writes itself. Watch our show LIVE M-F at 9:30 am ET on the On3 Sports YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@On3sports Hosts: Andy Staples, Ari WassermanProducer: River Bailey Want to partner with the show? E-mail [e-mail]

You hear the sirens. I get to do my best Roger Goodell right now. We have a trade. We're gonna hear Roger Goodell say that on Thursday night, but I never thought as someone who covered college football that I would ever get to say that. But we have a trade. This is the most absurd and beautiful sport on the face of the earth. I don't care what anybody says. This is the best thing ever. Like and I don't know if people think this is a Tennessee UCLA. This is a national story of great proportions. Like you're talking about a dream scenario. We spent 10 minutes discussing this morning about whether or not we're gonna pay more attention to UCLA because Nico's there.

Like Tennessee is my squad now. Like I am locked in all year. Like every single snap. Andy, I've got all this excitement. I'm sorry, I'm talking a lot. Let me tell the audience exactly what happened because there are people who have not followed every step of the way so

Two weeks ago our guy Pete Nacos reports that Nico Yamai Amaliava Tennessee starting quarterback is still negotiating with Tennessee He then skips the next to last day of spring practice in the spring game enters the transfer portal He announces on Sunday night that he is going to UCLA. Now we've been reporting that he was probably going to UCLA, which of course raised some questions because Joey Aguiar, who had been Appalachian State starter for the last two years, was at UCLA. He transferred there this off season. He was supposed to be the QB1

there. Well if Nico goes there then he didn't have a job. So what happens then? Well, Nico commits to UCLA on Sunday. On Monday morning, Joey Aguilar enters the transfer portal. Monday night, Joey Aguilar commits to Tennessee. The 30 for 30 writes itself. Oh my god, this is like we were joking about this this morning

and it's actually happening. Now listen, I wrote a column last week when Nico left Tennessee that Tennessee was one of the best potential landing spots for anybody in the country because of you know, a fan base that just starving for a winner and just looking to give its heart to somebody. Now the person that's coming in to potentially start next year is also a person that was kind of scorned by Nico as well and it's almost like your my enemy or the the enemy of my enemy is my friend type of a deal. Like it is Unbelievable, and if this kid can play,

which I think he can reports that we got were that UCLA was very pleased with what they were getting from him in practice. This could be the writing of one of the great Tennessee legends stories in the making like this is insanely entertaining, like insanely entertaining. Well, this would be a great college football story period. Now I

will pump the brakes a tad, because I don't know that Joey Aguilar is going to Tennessee to start. We don't know that Jake Merklinger is there. He's a redshirt freshman, George McIntyre is there. He's a true freshman. So there's no guarantee that Joey Aguilar becomes the starter, but he does have a lot of experience. He's gonna be in the mix. And like you said, if you're a fan of story,

the guy who got aced out of the job he thought he was gonna have, and then went and took the old guy's job, would be incredible. Also too, if you wanna strip away all the drama and all the things about this story, Andy, take the names away, take the situation away, take the schools away and just say,

quarterback with multiple years of starting experience transfers into program with only freshmen on the team, what do you think you would think about that move? Like I know it's like, you don't want to jump the gun and just be like, oh, this is his job to win or this is his job and it's been guaranteed. And maybe it hasn't been, but if you read the lines of the circumstances that Tennessee was in,

which is, you know, potentially having to rely on a redshirt freshmen with little to no experience. And they go out and get a guy who's been a multi-year productive starter, even if it's in at the same level, you would automatically assume that that person was going there to start. So like for me, I'm going to be operating until further notice that that's what's happening here.

And you know what? This could be insanely. Unbelievable, like and I know that we all had like like it hey hey, are you ready? You ready for the plot to thicken? Are you going to tell me what I think you're going to say about them meeting up one day? No, no, no, not just that. The plot thicken tonight tonight.

CBS Sports reporting. That Madden Iamaleava, Nico's younger brother, has now entered the transfer portal. Madden is a freshman at Arkansas. Ari remember where Madden was committed for most of his recruitment? You know Arkansas and signing day, yeah. He was committed to UCLA of his recruitment. You are on signing day. Yeah, yeah.

He was at UCLA just time for, uh, you know, fences to be mended out there in LA and beautiful LA. And I think that's probably what we're getting here. I think it's hilarious that Nico literally tagged himself in a story like driving in a car and feel like two days ago, but that's how quickly things change in the sport. It's unbelievable. But I also, from a tactical standpoint,

again, we don't want to strip away the drama. The drama is why I wake up in the morning, but it's a really, really good move from a roster standpoint. Andy, you have to vamp for a second. My daughter's screaming. Vamp. She thinks this is a big deal too. It so. On a Kuno in the

chat reminds me this is this is not exactly the first trade because I was trying to figure out who else had two players swap teams in the same portal cycle, much less two quarterbacks. This one I had forgotten probably because it was the old rules where undergraduates has sit out a year. Kyler Murray goes to Oklahoma between the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Trevor Knight, Katy Perry's favorite quarterback, call me, goes from Oklahoma to Texas A&M to play in the 2016 season.

Remember there was that mass Exodus at a college station in 2015. And then trevor night winds up the starting quarterback so this isn't. Necessarily the first rate but this is the first of this error this is the first time we've seen it happen in a week like this if we were covering the pros. How would we like how would it come across on the transaction wire? I think it would be Tennessee traded Nico Iamaleava to UCLA for Joey Aguilar and cash because Tennessee saving some money on this deal. Yeah, sorry about that. My daughter heard the news and she fell off the side of the couch and hit her head on the table. So she's okay. Thank you. Thankfully

I'm here alone did not anticipate this tonight, but that's part of the deal. She's good. Collective wise too, I wonder if there's any like negotiation in the background in terms of like money that's gonna be owed in step when you have these two schools working together financially in the back.

I don't know like if it actually is kind of a trade. Like if you, like I know we're kind of using it as like tongue in cheek. One player is swapped for the other, but I wonder if this is gonna make it easier for both of these parties to move on from a financial standpoint too but what I was gonna say before my daughter almost cracked her head open is that it's a tactically great move for Tennessee because they absolutely needed to get a body in there right they had to get a

body in there regardless of whether that person was gonna start or not. And not just a body they needed someone who has played at the FBS level, preferably someone who took significant snaps at the FBS level, who if you like, even if you go with one of the young guys who you aren't afraid to put in a game, if you have to have to get somebody so. But that thing, this, tons of experience. He was Appalachian State starting quarterback for two years. Now, 2023 was a lot better than 2024. The team

around him was better in 2023 than 2024. So that there is concern because he was not as good last year as he was the year before. But again, the team wasn't as good. But imagine if like, Nico would have gone to U of A or to not as good last year as he was the year before. But again, the team wasn't as good. But imagine if like Nico would have gone to U of A or to another school and it wasn't UCLA and then Tennessee would have gotten Aguilar anyway. You would have been like, that is a great move, right? Like the fact that it's not just like a knife in the side

of the situation, it's a very good football move for the situation that Tennessee is in. And if he doesn't win the job, then that means, you know, Mercklinger, Mercklinger, you know, anybody else that is in that. I love that I have you just thinking his name is actually Jake Mercklinger. I'm not thinking it, it is.

And, but like, I like the move from a football standpoint. So like Tennessee's in a pretty good spot now. You know, Urban Meyer made some headways last week when he said Tennessee was screwed. Did you see that? We didn't talk about it on the show, but I want to call about it. I'm so good at keeping up with you. You're like the Energizer bunny, bro. Like you just like, I don't even know how I missed that. But Tennessee is not screwed anymore, right? Like that this is not screwed. Can we say that? But Tennessee is not screwed anymore, right? Like that this is not screwed. Can we say that? I still don't know if they're in a better position.

I don't know if they like there the Tennessee fans, like if we go to the ball quest message board right now, there will be a lot of fans saying, hey, we upgraded. I don't know that you did. Time will tell. I don't know that you upgraded, but you had to get with one foot out the door anyway, or a guy who was, was trying to negotiate and the way that the team Nico

leveraged this and just screwed up the entire negotiation. Like it was probably going to blow up anyway. So this is probably a better scenario. Joey IR goes to a place where he's wanted. He's not going, I guarantee you, he's not getting any sort of crazy promises or anything. Like Josh Heiple does not strike me as the kind of person who's like, yeah, you're gonna come in and start. Like, I don't think he's telling him that. I think he's like, you're gonna come compete

with these two dudes and we'll see who's better. Yeah, but at the same time too, I don't know that the discussion is whether or not Tennessee got better from Nico. I think the discussion is whether or not they got better from yesterday, and they unequivocally did. You know, it's like it doesn't matter who the starter is. Like if somebody has to win that job, it's a legitimate like if Mark Slinger wins the job, then that means that he beat out a person with multiple years of starting experience.

It means he's probably much readier to play, much more ready to play than we would have anticipated if he had to play out of necessity without that competition. So I absolutely love the move for Tennessee and I also love the Hollywood script that's being written right in front of our eyes. Like I am- Incredible. I want to hang up on this so I can go right immediately.

Once I get this kid down, like I'm gonna like fire flames are gonna come from my keyboard. Like, can you tell like I'm amped right now? Like I feel like I'm running on- Well, yeah, because listen, if this guy winds up starting for Tennessee and they wind up being good

and he takes them back to the playoff and basically takes them to the same place that Nico took them last year, then what a story. Like the only way the story gets better and more interesting is if Nico makes UCLA considerably better, they both wind up in the playoff. And that Friday night of the first round of the playoff,

it's UCLA at Tennessee. That would be unbelievable. I need to get in touch with Joey's representative so I can like have him tweet the baseball coach video and just say I'm at VFL like just like get the get the flames going already. You're either a ball or you're not. Yeah, no, I know I have his agent's number. I should text her and be like, Hey, listen, there's substantial marketing opportunities available

in the next few weeks. If he writes you're either a ball or you're not and I'm a ball like that entire city might explode Incredible theater incredible theater and like we were complaining like last week about how slow the offseason has been And like this to me would have just been one of the many moves That got ignored in the winter portal window because there's so many to keep up with and like this to me is maybe the biggest story of the offseason

um that just unfolding in front of our eyes and it's not just nico leaving but you add this layer to it like is like i know i was joking about like how i'm going to be wearing tennessee orange and you know rooting but like this is not must watch television for every random college football fan out there now like it's Tennessee not Okay television for everyone. Oh They're both appointment television now. So here's another layer to it Ross Dellinger of Yahoo reporting The Tennessee's deal with ex-USA UCLA QB Joey Aguilar if finalized is expected to pay him significantly less in for these seven figures less than

Nico Iamaljava's scheduled $2.4 million compensation that he was supposed to make at Tennessee that he's probably not making at UCLA either. That is an incredible savings. That's why we reported this if it were on the transaction wire as UCLA got Niko, Tennessee got Joey Aguiar in cash. Yeah, you know, Penn State hosted Trevor Pena and I know that Pete wrote a story. Former Syracuse receiver. If I'm Tennessee now, I'm taking the money that I saved on this transaction that I would have paid Niko and I'm upgrading a skill position and I'm just making this up. saved on this transaction that I would have paid Nico and I'm upgrading a skill position and I'm just making this up.

But if they can, you know, situate their roster with a few more pieces with some of the money that they've saved in order to help support whoever starting quarterback there and make their overall team better. Like I think you, I would like listen to the argument that Tennessee is going to be better this year than they would have been otherwise. Like I think I could listen to that now like I'm not Rewrite history and pretend like Nico's not good and it's not a loss. We talked about that. I'm not gonna do it Yeah, but could you imagine if they used the money that they saved to go get a guy like Pena?

Well, and they're looking at a guy named Keelan Marion from BYU right now So they are trying to upgrade the receiving corps. They do have more money to spend Ari I Got to say there there is a trade like Roger Goodell. We are going to upgrade the receiving core. They do have more money to spend. Ari, I got to say there is a trade like Roger Goodell. We are going to the draft this week thanks to Culver's. We're going to be in Green Bay. The great Wisconsin tailgate presented by Culver's. We're going to have a set at the draft. Like when Roger Goodell is about to go up there and say,

we have a trade, I'm going to tap him on the shovet. Raj, Raj, I already did this this week. I got this. But Culver's, Butterburgers, Fresh Frozen Custard, Wisconsin Cheese Curds, born in America's Dairyland, they brought it to the rest of the country because the rest of the country needed Butterburgers and Fresh Frozen Custard and Wisconsin Cheese Curds. But we're going to be in the middle of America's's dairy land at the draft at the Culver's Break Wisconsin tailgate Thursday and Friday. So everybody hit up Culver's get some fresh frozen custard and tune in. As we say, hey Raj, we've already covered the best trade of the week. So whatever

whatever these NFL teams have cooked up, they got nothing on us. Yeah, can't wait to get to Green Bay, but I do think we need to spend a few minutes talking about Madden, no? Of course. I'm Ali Abba, not the video game. Yes. Yeah, man. The video game because that would

do numbers, but the younger brother aspect of this is interesting because you know what? What if Big Nick is playing 3d chess and UCLA scrapes up the money that it wouldn't have paid otherwise in order to get mad in a better NIL deal on the back end They make up some extra money there. I don't know. I'm making that up, but the boy I'm seeing I'm seeing a lot of They're the ball family in the chat. You can't say that. Like the ball family won like LeVar ball won because he's got two kids in the NBA

and another kid like single handedly bringing hip hop back. So that's another song besides that one that it doesn't matter. OK, he made the first good hip hop song in like 10 years. So. Mostly because it's like a copy of every No Limit and Cash Money song from 2000. LaMelo Ball's actually good at basketball, right? Very good at basketball. And Lonzo Ball's not bad either.

He's still in the league. I thought he washed out. No, they're not as good as LaMelo, but yeah. And then L'Angelo, yes, reinventing hip hop. So comparing Team Nico to the Ball family. No, no, no, no, no. They're going to have to accomplish a lot more for that comparison to stay. I think that the comparison is because of theatrics.

And I don't know where you would put the Iyam Ali Ava family in the theatric because like they've been kind of quiet. Like the dad's not. Yeah, after after they called Pete Naco's of bi 7 CH and we promoted him to be I 1 CH like they've been. Yeah, very very quiet, but it's a theatrical thing. But like the thing that I wanted to take a step back on to with this news is that we theorized a little bit about how this

move for Nico to get Nico could help UCLA try to build something into the future or it shows a financial commitment and trying to make the team better than what it is and if Madden can play and I stood behind him at a camp two summers ago and he could sling the ball pretty well if he can play and you not only get a year of Nico or maybe even two years of Nico because now the odds of him if he's not NFL ready a year from now staying are probably higher given it's home and his brother's there and then you have your future you know kind of mapped out at the quarterback position then you have an ability now to recruit around a guy and make your team better now like I don't know if Madden Yamaliyava

is anywhere as good as Nico was in high school my understanding understanding is that he's not, but if he is like a legitimate. This sets up the dream scenario for them, because let's say Nico has a good year, then Madden is waiting in the wings. He becomes the heir apparent to his own brother. He hasn't announced that he's going to UCLA yet. He hasn't, but I think we're reading that he leaves here. Yeah, but continue Andy. Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you. Listen, I just want to run this back to Knoxville. Let's run it back to Knoxville because again,

you wrote this column last week when we knew Nico was leaving, we didn't yet know where Nico was going. But you said there's an opportunity here for somebody to become a folk hero. Joey Aguilar is the guy who can become that folk hero. Now there's a lot that has to happen for him to get there, but it is ready made. If he can step in and play well and lead Tennessee to even a similar season to what Nico did last year, he becomes an absolute hero.

Um, do you, what do you think he has to do to reach hero status? He becomes an absolute hero. Do you? What do you think he has to do to reach hero status? Love Tennessee and be pretty good. Yes, that's it. You don't have to go win the whole thing. Be pretty good. Be tough. Like be be everything that they want.

You don't have to be Peyton Manning. Yes, be Diego Pavia. that they want. Like you don't have to be Peyton Manning. Yes, be Diego Pavia, be there Diego Pavia, which by the way, playing style is kind of very gunslingery. Both of those guys. Yes. But like that to me, it's like if they could have Diego Pavia production immediately in a situation where people,

former coaches, famous coaches were saying they were screwed a week ago, then you're like not only saving yourself, you're like every like the thing about the situation is everybody's winning right now. Like there isn't really a loser if you, unless you think Nico's the loser in taking the money less, like he's probably the loser in the scenario, but Tennessee is winning because they're getting more quarterback depth than a legitimate competition. Joey is winning because he's no longer going to be benched behind somebody that he wasn't anticipating being benched behind a week ago. And like now we have two interesting stories on both coasts. So like I am all in on this, super excited about it.

Can't wait to write about it. Like I don't know if we're missing anything, but we have a whole show in the morning that we can review it on too because like I just like I'm pumped. I'm so up for Ellie says just be close enough and we'll be sure he'll never buy a beer again. Before we go, let's leave the folks with this because you know, I obviously there's a lot of Tennessee fans watching this but then there's folks that will root for other teams. Where a lot of Tennessee fans watching this, but then there's folks that root for other teams

Where would we say Tennessee fans rank in? terms of how much They love slash obsess over slash. Those are all very different things. But yes Yes, like I'm gonna date myself again. I dated myself with the with the cash money and and Master P reference earlier Tiny tune adventures Elmira She loved the animals so much. She would squeeze them to death Like that's Tennessee fans. They love you so much. They'll squeeze you to death if you're a ball That's what Joey Aguiar is walking into

if he Comes in and balls out. He's a legend in the state of Tennessee forever. Forever and the fans there deserve it like that's the thing like there are some bad apples, but there's bad apples at every in every fan base. And like the thing is, is that you know, I've never seen a game there, Andy, and I hope that this move means I can. I've been to Knoxville a few times. I've been outside the stadium.

I've been in the Manning room. I've been to the building. I've never seen a game there, but what I understand it's one of the best stadium environments in the entire country. Listen, it's filled with people who are starving to not only love their quarterback, but to be a winner.

And I think that they got a step closer, maybe not step closer than they were a week ago, but a step closer than they were yesterday tonight. When they run through the TRE there is not much cooler in college football. Guess who's running through the freaking tee this fall? Joey Aguiar! We have a trade! Tennessee and UCLA have swapped quarterbacks and the crazy college football off season. It's just a little bit crazier. We'll talk to you 9 30 a.m. tomorrow. We're here every day.

We 9 30 a.m. Eastern time. Come join us every day. 930 a.m. What a sport. What a sport. Thanks for being here.