OldTimer’s Dugout - Off Topic Thread

From ESPN:

Sources told ESPN that Iamaleava wanted at least $4 million from Tennessee and that what UCLA was prepared to offer him wasn't remotely close to that figure. Iamaleava was earning $2.4 million at Tennessee under the contract he signed with Spyre Sports Group, the Tennessee-based collective, when he was still in high school. It's a deal that would have paid him in the $10 million range had he stayed four years at Tennessee.

Nic Iamaleava, also wanted Tennessee to surround his son with better receivers and a more effective offensive line in pass protection.

Before the start of spring practice this year, Iamaleava's representatives reached out to Oregon to gauge its interest in the quarterback, but the school said it wasn't interested, sources told ESPN. Oregon then notified Tennessee that Iamaleava was being shopped to the Ducks.

A Power 4 general manager told ESPN's Pete Thamel and Max Olson earlier this week that he thought Iamaleava has "zero market," and added that it would be an "interesting test of how smart and disciplined colleges are in looking at him."



Nico is going to make far less money, playing for a team whose offensive line can't protect him like Tennessee did and he'll play against inferior competition and it will cost him 20-40% more to live near UCLA compared to UT.
 
When players leave to go elsewhere, I will never understand why grown men and women bash the 18-22 year old . You know before the NIL these young men and women had enough pressure on them, now with money involved and parents and handlers in their ears of course some are going to make a mistake.

Nico and his entourage made a mistake but I'm not going to hate on the young man. You know Nico will listen to his father and elders in the Samoan/ Polynesian Cultures you don't defy your parents. So when his father said do this and do that Nico done as instructed. Now Nico is gone,so be it. I wish him no harm or no success either, it is what it is...


Time to turn a new page at QB 1 position, hopefully it's one of our own instead of a one year mercenary....
 
From ESPN:

Sources told ESPN that Iamaleava wanted at least $4 million from Tennessee and that what UCLA was prepared to offer him wasn't remotely close to that figure. Iamaleava was earning $2.4 million at Tennessee under the contract he signed with Spyre Sports Group, the Tennessee-based collective, when he was still in high school. It's a deal that would have paid him in the $10 million range had he stayed four years at Tennessee.

Nic Iamaleava, also wanted Tennessee to surround his son with better receivers and a more effective offensive line in pass protection.

Before the start of spring practice this year, Iamaleava's representatives reached out to Oregon to gauge its interest in the quarterback, but the school said it wasn't interested, sources told ESPN. Oregon then notified Tennessee that Iamaleava was being shopped to the Ducks.

A Power 4 general manager told ESPN's Pete Thamel and Max Olson earlier this week that he thought Iamaleava has "zero market," and added that it would be an "interesting test of how smart and disciplined colleges are in looking at him."



Nico is going to make far less money, playing for a team whose offensive line can't protect him like Tennessee did and he'll play against inferior competition and it will cost him 20-40% more to live near UCLA compared to UT.

Supposedly it is $1.75 mill at UCLA
 
One thing a lot of the media members fail to mention is the fact Tennessee does not have a state income tax, which saves our athletes money. So that $2.4M he was earning here would be roughly $2.15M in Los Angeles. So if he is making $1.5-$1.75M in LA that is a HUGE drop. After state taxes that would be a net of roughly $1.3-$1.55M. So he’s going to end up taking a $1M pay cut to play for a worse program 🤣
 
I think I have finally reached the point where I don’t care anymore about the Nico saga. No one knows anything or has a “scoop.” Its a shame how the adults around him have let him down, and sadly, didn’t have the wherewithal to see what they were doing. Hope it’s not true that he wasn’t honoring his NIL commitments. I picture CMO, Pickens and Zakai with their Weigel stories and autograph signings. Nico has brought some of this upon himself. Definitely is a cautionary tale as I read somewhere.
 
One thing a lot of the media members fail to mention is the fact Tennessee does not have a state income tax, which saves our athletes money. So that $2.4M he was earning here would be roughly $2.15M in Los Angeles. So if he is making $1.5-$1.75M in LA that is a HUGE drop. After state taxes that would be a net of roughly $1.3-$1.55M. So he’s going to end up taking a $1M pay cut to play for a worse program 🤣
That should be a lesson learnt . The grass isn't always greener on the other side. UCLA is in the pits of hell right now as a program just as Tennessee was from 2010-2020 with a couple of decent years in between.
 
I think I have finally reached the point where I don’t care anymore about the Nico saga. No one knows anything or has a “scoop.” Its a shame how the adults around him have let him down, and sadly, didn’t have the wherewithal to see what they were doing. Hope it’s not true that he wasn’t honoring his NIL commitments. I picture CMO, Pickens and Zakai with their Weigel stories and autograph signings. Nico has brought some of this upon himself. Definitely is a cautionary tale as I read somewhere.
We learnt tough lessons about “the fam” being part of the recruiting process as far back as the Holly Warlick years. Was reaffirmed with Nolen and others. I am sure Heupel and the staff were aware of the potential for this instability in the relationship with Nico. Definitely was a high risk/high reward situation.
 

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