'I was thinking about going there' - One of Nico Iamaleava's new teammates at UCLA nearly played for the Tennessee Vols

One of Nico Iamaleava's top targets in the passing game at UCLA nearly played for the Tennessee Vols out of high school.

Iamaleava, a former five-star quarterback who spent the first two seasons of his career at Tennessee, already knew Bruins wide receiver Mikey Matthews before transferring to UCLA earlier this spring.

Matthews and Iamaleava played together in Knoxville on a 7-on-7 team back in 2022. The two also knew each other from high school football in California.

At the time, Iamaleava was already committed to the Vols. Matthews, meanwhile, had an offer from Tennessee.

“The highlight of the visit was being around the fans," said Matthews to 247Sports in 2022 after a visit to Tennessee. "The love they show was insane. We were there for the Spring Game and also a baseball game and people would come up say hi to Nico and recognized me too, it was a fun experience.”

Matthews told reporters this week that he was "thinking about" going to Tennessee as a high school recruit.

“Nico’s my dog,” said Matthews. “We played through high school together. Just crossed paths together through 7-on-7 and stuff like that. So, we already had that connection. Coming out of high school I had a Tennessee offer, and I was thinking about going there. We had already built that connection beforehand, so when I knew he was coming here it was a blessing. Happy to have him here knowing that he’s going to get me that rock whenever.”

The Vols ended up signing five-star wide receiver Mike Matthews during the 2024 recruiting cycle. It would've been quite confusing to have a "Mike Matthews" and a "Mikey Matthews" on the roster at the same time.

Mikey Matthews, by the way, ended up signing with Utah out of high school. He then transferred to California before landing at UCLA.