Five-star Nicholaus Iamaleava, the fourth-ranked quarterback in the Class of 2023 named the Miami football program as one of his 12 finalists on Saturday. Alabama, Auburn, BYU, Georgia, Mississippi, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Oregon State, Tennessee and UCLA are the other finalists.
In the last two seasons, Iamaleava has completed 59.8 percent of his passes for 3,248 yards, 50 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Iamaleava is ranked the 17th player overall and fourth in California in addition to being the fourth-best QB in 2023. The recruitment for Iamaleava is a four-team race per On3.Com.
Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and UCLA are each listed as the 15.9 percent co-favorites to sign Iamaleava. Mississippi, Notre Dame and Ohio State are listed at 5.9 percent and Clemson who was not named a finalist is at 5.4 percent according to the On3 recruiting prediction machine. Adding Iamaleava would be huge for Miami.
The Miami football team already has one of the best QB units in college football entering 2022. Tyler Van Dyke earned the ACC Rookie of the Year and Offensive Rookie of the Year this season. Jake Garcia was the eighth-ranked QB in the Class of 2022 and Jacurri Brown the 17th ranked signal-caller in 2022.
BREAKING: Five-Star QB Nico Iamaleava has narrowed his list to 1️⃣2️⃣ Schools!
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 25, 2021
The 6’6 200 QB from Downey, CA is ranked as a Top 10 Player in the Class of 2023 (No. 3 QB)https://t.co/ZJfTUBRsW8 pic.twitter.com/CTXSWrdbTt
As a third-year sophomore in 2022, Van Dyke will have the option of entering the 2023 NFL Draft. Van Dyke has three years of eligibility remaining after this season. Iamaleava would be the second five-star QB Miami has ever signed. Only Kyle Wright who signed with Miami in 2003 was a higher-ranked Hurricanes QB signee.
With Mario Cristobal being hired earlier this month, the tenor of the recruiting for Miami will reach another level. Cristobal has already made an impact in the Class of 2022. Four-stars, defensive end Nyjalik Kelly and tight end Jaleel Skinner signed with Miami earlier this month without being previously committed to the Hurricanes.
The 2023 Class will be the first QB Cristobal signs with Miami. Brown was previously committed to Miami after being recruited by the previous coaching staff led by head coach Manny Diaz and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee. Cristobal has not named a staff. The current focus has been on recruiting for the 2022 Class.