Nico Iamaleava Named to Walter Camp Award Watch List
August 04, 2025 | Football
UCLA redshirt sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava has been named to the 45-man Walter Camp 2025 Player of the Year Watch List, it was announced on Monday by the Walter Camp Football Foundation.
Iamaleava becomes the first Bruin to appear on the preseason Walter Camp watch list since quarterback Josh Rosen in 2017. More recently, Bruin defensive end Laiatu Latu (at UCLA 2022-23) was a semifinalist for the Camp Award in 2023 before being selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft by Indianapolis.
This is the second preseason watch list that Iamaleava has been selected to in the leadup to the 2024 campaign, as he was earlier tabbed to the Maxwell Award Watch List (most outstanding college football player).
Iamaleava, a native of Long Beach, Calif., returns home after spending two seasons at Tennessee where he led the Volunteers to a 11-3 record as the starting quarterback and a College Football Playoff appearance in 2024. Iamaleava finished last season completing 213-of-334 passes (63.8%) for 2,616 yards (201.2 yards per game) and nine touchdowns with five interceptions. He totaled 299-plus yards of total offense in three contests against UT-Chattanooga (320), Kentucky (306) and Vanderbilt (299). A master of the deep ball, Iamaleava ranked second in the Southeastern Conference with six 50-plus-yard completions last season.
In 2023, Iamaleava played in five games and served as Tennessee's backup quarterback as a true freshman. Iamaleava shined in his first career start versus Iowa in the 2024 Citrus Bowl, accounting for 178 yards of total offense and four touchdowns to earn MVP honors.
The 2025 Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list will be narrowed to 10 semi-finalists in early November, and three finalists will be announced in early December. The winner of the Walter Camp Award will be announced on ESPN's College Football Awards Show on Dec. 12.
UCLA opens the 2025 season at home at The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. versus Utah on Aug. 30 at 8 p.m. (PT).
