UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast: Transfer Roundup, Part 3

On today's episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast, we round up UCLA's 2025 transfer players and continue a new series detailing every incoming transfer.

To watch today's episode, view below:

The 2025 college football season is looming which means UCLA Bruins fans will finally get their first look at some of the Bruins' incoming transfers from the offseason.

DeShaun Foster went to work in the transfer portal in his first full offseason as Westwood's head coach and lured 29 transfers to cultivate the 20th-ranked transfer class in the nation on 247Sports' transfer ranking board.

In this new UCLA Bruins on SI series, we're going to dive into each transfer and how they did last season, including a few evaluations from national college football analysts.

In part three, we're taking a look at some dynamic threats on the field and a possible future star quarterback -- Mikey Matthews, Rodrick Pleasant and Madden Iamaleava.

Mikey Matthews, Junior TR WR, California Golden Bears

Matthews is projected to be one of Nico Iamaleava's most targeted receivers this upcoming season. The dynamic slot finished last season with 32 receptions for 272 yards and one touchdown.

"UCLA has some obvious ties with Matthews, given he's from Southern California originally and he played for Toler last season. With UCLA losing Logan Loya and J.Michael Sturdivant to the portal, they are in need of some more experienced pass catchers and Matthews has played at both his previous stops of Utah and Cal with 60 career catches. We anticipate that Matthews will play in the slot and, given Rico Flores' injury, he likely projects as the starter there. We'd also anticipate that Matthews will immediately step in as UCLA's new punt returner in the absence of Loya, and he should be fine there -- probably pretty similar to Loya." -- Bruin Report Online Staff

Rodrick Pleasant, Redshirt Sophomore TR CB, Oregon Ducks

Pleasant may be slotted behind a few corners on the projected depth chart, but he comes with a catch -- he is one of the fastest players in college football. A track star in high school and at Oregon, Pleasant brings dynamic speed to UCLA's defense.

"The talent acquisition in the secondary continues for Martin. With the addition of Pleasant, UCLA has brought in nine transfer defensive backs for 2025, and many of them former highly rated prospects. We love the theory of bringing in a lot of talented players, creating some competition, and then seeing who rises to the top. What's more, UCLA is also bringing back players who left L.A. for college and then discovered that the grass wasn't necessarily greener, even at Autzen Stadium. If UCLA can use those lessons to impart some wisdom to the local high schoolers who are looking at leaving the nest, the bounceback transfers of guys like Pleasant and Nico Iamaleava could even pay dividends in high school recruiting." Bruin Report Online Staff

Madden Iamaleava, Freshman TR QB, HS/Arkansas Razorbacks

Iamaleava participated in Arkansas' spring practice before transferring to UCLA after his older brother, Nico, transferred from Tennessee. Reports out of the Razorbacks' camp was that he was a sure-fire future starter. Below is his scouting report out of high school:

"Iamaleava has had a strong junior season and showed he’s deserving of all the attention and early scholarships he received this off-season. Iamaleava didn’t start a game until this year after backing up his older brother Nico Iamaleava, who’s a freshman at Tennessee. Like his older brother, Iamaleava is a two-sport standout and a talented volleyball player but his future is definitely at quarterback. He has always had a strong arm but has made a nice jump in poise, accuracy and maturity. He shows dual-threat ability and although he doesn’t run a ton, he has very good pocket mobility and can extend plays. He’s a tough kid, highly competitive and as the game continues to slow down for him, he’ll make another big jump." -- Greg Biggins, 247Sports National Recruiting Analyst

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