Ranking Nico Iamaleava's 2024 Performances: #4 NC State

Nico Iamaleava is one of the largest topics of conversation in college football ahead of his redshirt sophomore season with the UCLA Bruins.

After a stellar redshirt freshman season with the Tennessee Volunteers that led them to their first ever College Football Playoff appearance, Iamaleava entered the transfer portal after a NIL dispute that was largely publicized and turned him into one of the most polarizing figures in college football.

He finished last season leading the Vols to a 10-3 record and passed for 2,616 yards, 19 touchdowns and five interceptions on 63.8% (213-334) completion percentage. With that being said, let's rank Iamaleava's best performances of the season, moving onto No. 4 -- Sept. 7 against NC State.

We're getting into the part of the rankings where the strength of the opponent matters more. While this may not have been one of Iamaleava's best games statistically, he and the Vols dominated then-23rd-ranked NC State 51-10.

Iamaleava finished with 211 passing yards on 16-of-23 (69.6%) completions for two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also added a rushing touchdown and 65 ground yards on eight carries. He finished the game with a 157.9 passer rating and an ESPN Adjusted QBR Rating of 76.6.

In his second game with Tennessee last season, Iamaleava threw his first touchdown pass in the Duke's Mayo Classic in the third quarter, a 15-yard pass to tight end Miles Kitselman with 10:27 remaining. Later in the quarter, Iamaleava ran into the endzone on a 31-yard scramble with 4:02 remaining to put the Vols up 37-3.

Finally, the redshirt freshman capped off his performance with an 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end Holden Staes to beat the Wolfpack 51-10.

Games like this against ranked opponents are crucial to a dynamic player like Iamaleava. It shows Bruins fans that he's able to deliver a solid performance against difficult opponents. This will be essential in the Big Ten.

UCLA won't be playing as bad opponents this season as Tennessee did last season, being in the Big Ten and only having three non-conference games, but the Bruins should be favored against their first three opponents anyways.

They open the season against Utah, UNLV and New Mexico before opening up Big Ten play against Northwestern. Coupling Iamaleava's expected leap ahead of his redshirt sophomore season and how good he was against non-conference opponents last season, UCLA has a great chance at starting next season 4-0.