Nico Iamaleava Must Prove To Be UCLA Football's 'Leader'

Pro Football Focus ranks Nico Iamaleava 10th among the returning quarterbacks in the Big 10 with a 72.0 grade. Julian Sayin of Ohio State is first among Big 10 QBs with a 92.9 PFF Grade. Former UCLA QB Dante Moore, now with Oregon, is second with a 90.2 PFF Grade.

The returning QBs include players with prior college experience and transfers. Among the QBs ranked ahead of Iamaleava are transfers Anthony Colandrea at Nebraska, Katin Houser at Illinois, Rocco Becht at Penn State, Colton Joseph at Wisconsin, and Josh Hoover at Indiana.

Highest Graded Returning Big Ten Quarterbacks🎯 pic.twitter.com/QMtM4NXiO9
— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 18, 2026

Nico Iamaleava Adapting to a New Offensive System

Iamaleava enters the 2026 season playing for a third coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback coach in as many seasons. New UCLA head coach Bob Chensey has posted a winning record in all 16 of his seasons as a head coach in Division III, II, the Football Championship Subdivision, and in the Group of Five.

New UCLA offensive coordinator and QB coach Dean Kennedy is entering his fifth consecutive season and third program coaching under Chesney. Kennedy began as the QB coach at FCS Holy Cross under Chesney in 2022, then served as the offensive coordinator and QB coach with the Crusaders in 2023, and held the same position at James Madison in the past two seasons.

The Big Ten just announced that QB Nico Iamaleava, DB Cole Martin, LB Samuel Omosigho, and head coach Bob Chesney will represent UCLA at Big Ten Media Days.
— Mike Regalado 🏀🏈🎧 (@MikeRegaladoLA) June 24, 2026

Where Iamaleava Ranked Among 2025 Big 10 QBs

Iamaleava was 13th in the Big 10 in 2025, averaging 175.3 passing yards per game; 14th with a 123.49 passer rating; eighth with a 64.4 completion percentage; 17th with 6.0 yards per attempt; 12th with 13 touchdown passes; and 10th with seven interceptions thrown.

UCLA needs far more efficiency from Iamaleava in 2026. Iamaleava had career-worsts in 2025, including his YPA and passer rating, as well as a 4.0 TD percentage, a 2.2 interception percentage, a 5.80 adjusted YPA, and 9.3 yards per completion.

"There is no doubt he is the leader of this team."@UCLAFootball HC Bob Chesney on QB Nico Iamaleava's continued growth as a leader 👇#B1GToday pic.twitter.com/RjM7JvAouF
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) July 17, 2026

Nico Iamaleava Becoming UCLA's Team Leader

"There is no doubt he is the leader of the team," Chesney said about Iamaleava in an interview posted by the Big 10 to its X account on Friday. Iamaleava is building critical chemistry, with the season opener against California just under seven weeks away.

Iamaleava could be headed for his best season in 2026. Dual-threat QBs have thrived under Chesney and Kennedy. Iamaleava is the most talented QB Chesney and Kennedy have coached during their careers. The case can also be made that Chesney and Kennedy are the best coaches that Iamaleava has played for during his collegiate career.

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