NIL drama: LSU coach Brian Kelly weighs in on Nico Iamaleava’s exit from Tennessee

LSU head coach Brian Kelly weighed in on the saga of former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava. 

On Saturday, Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel announced Iamaleava would not return next season. 

Heupel said Iamaleava’s decision to skip practice during his name, image and likeness (NIL) contract negotiations with Tennessee led to the split. 

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LSU head coach Brian Kelly watches from the sideline in the second half against Alabama in Baton Rouge Nov. 9, 2024.  (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

“This program has been around for a long time,” Heupel said. “There are a lot of great coaches, a lot of great players who came before that laid the cornerstone pieces, the legacy, the tradition that is Tennessee football. It’s going to be around a long time after I’m gone and after they’re gone.”

Kelly predicted Iamaleava’s situation will become more common as NIL evolves.

Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel watches a game in the first half at Ohio Stadium Dec. 21, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (Imagn)

“I think there are changes coming to NIL. I think this is the first version of correction,” Kelly said Saturday.

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“I think we are going to see a lot of this. This was a new world. I think we are going to navigate the best we can, but I think there are going to be other situations that come. I think we are going to have to do the best we can. I think there (is) going to be better information that will allow people to look at comps for positions and say, ‘That makes sense’ and ’That doesn’t make sense.'”

NIL has had a historic effect on college sports, and, this month, several high-profile programs opted not to hold traditional spring games. Some of the schools’ decisions dealt with concerns it would open the door for more players to enter the transfer portal or be enticed by another programs’ NIL packages.

Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Nico Iamaleava walks off the field after a win against the Vanderbilt Commodores at FirstBank Stadium Nov. 30, 2024. (Steve Roberts/Imagn Images)

LSU was among those schools that did play a spring game this year. 

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Iamaleava was making $2.4 million on an NIL contact. But when he signed it, it was reported to be worth an estimated $8 million. Iamaleava received the initial payment when he was still enrolled in high school. ESPN reported the total value of the deal could have reached nearly $10 million.

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