On Sunday, things were made official, with Tennessee Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava announcing that he'll be joining the UCLA Bruins. This was something people were expecting after Colin Cowherd broke the news earlier in the week.
Now, Josh Heupel must find a new starting quarterback for the 2025 season. While fans believe in either Jake Merklinger or George MacIntyre, Heupel said he'd be bringing in some QB help through the spring transfer portal. Thus far, however, the search hasn't quite gone to plan.
Tennessee reportedly targeted Josh Hoover, but the TCU standout said no thanks. Currently, Notre Dame transfer Steve Angeli is considered the top option in the portal, with Tennessee expected to pick up its interest if it misses out on other QBs higher on the board - which of course includes guys who haven't decided to transfer yet. Before UT makes up its mind, though, Angeli is all set to take a visit to Syracuse:
Notre Dame quarterback transfer Steve Angeli is set to visit Syracuse, a source tells @CBSSports/@247Sports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) April 21, 2025
Angeli ranks as one of the best available players in the transfer portal. Syracuse led the nation in passing last year with Kyle McCord at QB.https://t.co/10Sz3YwNKg pic.twitter.com/alHHcz5PFz
Notre Dame quarterback transfer Steve Angeli will visit Syracuse
The Syracuse offense could definitely fit Angeli quite well, but it's a bit interesting as Fran Brown announced Rickie Collins as his starter for 2025 not long ago. Brown did say that the team would still bring in QB help as well.
Angeli isn't going to go somewhere to be a backup, which means he'll be pushing for the QB1 job wherever he goes. With his experience alone, he'd be a strong addition to a QBs room, of course including Tennessee's.
The two QBs on the roster for Heupel are a second-year freshman in Merklinger and a true freshman in MacIntyre. This team is built to push for a return trip to the College Football Playoff, but will Heupel take a gamble on going with such a young signal-caller as his starter?
That remains to be seen, but plenty of UT fans remain hopeful that Angeli will make his way to Knoxville for a visit before he shuts down his recruitment. No one ever imagined that Iamaleava would leave to go play for UCLA, but this is how things have played out for the Vols. It's unknown if Angeli will visit UT, but if he signs with Syracuse, who else will Heupel end up targeting? An answer to that question needs to come soon.