The Nico Iamaleava Saga Continues

…But when he was sidelined by an injury at Sac State, he couldn’t stop thinking about filmmaking, and we’re glad he didn’t. Would love to see his game film someday, though. 

Finally, Mr. Irrelevant is getting some relevance. Thank you, Hollywood, for making a movie about John Tuggle. Now, if we could get Michael Shannon to play Bill Parcells in the movie, oh wait! He’s already been cast? No way. 

Marquez Valdes-Scantling is checking all kinds of stuff off his to-do list. Win two Super Bowls? Check. Put on a fashion show at the Tampa Museum of Art? Check. 

Unrivaled co-founders slash WNBA finals rivals Stewie and Phee made the 2025 TIME100 list, and Alex Morgan was tasked with writing about them. Another accomplishment, eh? Those Wikipedia pages are getting looooonnnng.

As a former athlete herself, CultureCon CEO Imani Ellis knows the importance of athletes viewing themselves as brands. The CultureCon Sports Summit will showcase the entire athlete, not just the on-court stuff.   

If NIL wasn’t wild enough, Tennessee and Nico Iamaleava are taking the drama to new heights. At this point, the situation between the two parties feels so out of hand that it could bring about some kind of change regarding how deals are conducted between collectives (independent organizations that fundraise for universities) and players. 

The context is that Nico Iamaleava was Tennessee’s QB1. He took them to the ‘yoff last year, and everything seemed great. But tensions were bubbling beneath the surface. Nico officially entered the transfer portal the moment the spring window opened yesterday (but not before skipping a spring practice). 

Reports came out that he was unhappy with his $2.2m annual paycheck from the collective; his camp, which features his dad and his dad’s friend, said they wanted $4m for another year of the QB’s efforts. By the way, when he signed his deal in 2022 for $8m, it was record-breaking.

Talking heads’ heads started talkin’ and most have decided this was not a smart move for Nico. For several days, we were all told that no school was willing to hit that lofty $4m benchmark for Iamaleava. Maybe feared Nico might be out of prospects. All the while NFL teams are watching and taking notes (most likely with red pens). 

Yesterday, Front Office Sports reported that there were never demands for more money, according to a source in Nico’s camp. Allegedly, the Iamaleava ilk asked for an o-line that could protect him and better receivers. 

We still don’t know what’s what, but what we do know is: it seems like the adults in the room have a lot of say in the futures of these athletes who are basically kids. Yesterday afternoon, Colin Cowherd reported that Nico was headed to UCLA. But in terms of his future after school, was the damage already done? He may be losing millions. 

It’s all very convoluted, and the transfer portal and NIL have long-term effects on these people’s lives. So, should someone be protecting these kids? Are they getting bad advice from non-certified agents, lawyers, and parents? Are the schools undervaluing them? Will the NCAA find a way to strike a balance between maintaining the soul of college athletics and ensuring athletes make the money they've earned? 

Now, Tennessee has to parse through a long list of portal names to find a new QB. The cycle continues.

Moveover MLS, the USL is almost here.

The exponential success of the American second-tier soccer league, the USL, marks a moment of significance in sports fandom for many reasons. While the MLS operates like a typical sports league with franchise fees and exclusivity, the United Soccer League is changing the game. 

It runs on a promotion and relegation system, like Euro soccer, er, footie. Every club has a chance at the top, and every club is surrounded and supported by a tight-knit community. And its viewership numbers are on par with MLS prior to the Apple deal.

Jordan Wise, writer of Gameplayer on Substack (and agent of former Arsenal star Emile Smith Rowe), argues that it’s only a matter of time before the USL eclipses the MLS. 

Because of the communities they exist in, these teams are the heartbeat of their cities, Wise claims. Monterey Bay, New Mexico United, El Paso Locomotive FC, Oakland Roots—these are all places that were desperate for something to root for. Many of them don’t have other professional teams, after all. 

For USL, it’s all grassroots. They’re values-based. They have the “counter culture” vibe that gets viewers to make sure they tune in to try and boost the numbers. And in 2027, they’ll leverage those philosophies to usher in the USL Division One league.  

We can’t say for sure if they’ll surpass MLS, or what the measurement for superior success is, but it’s always fun to see a little competition among leagues.