Josh Hepel placed his mouth where there was no extra money for Nico Iamareava.
Iamaleava became the first hold-in of his first NIL era in college football when he didn't practice on Friday while trying to negotiate a better payment.
Tension and uncertainty quickly escalated between the sides, with Tennessee removed Iamaleava from the roster before Saturday's spring game, and reportedly declared he wanted to enter the transfer portal when it opened Wednesday.
“It's a college football situation,” Hapel told the company's Vol Network. “At the end of the day, no one is bigger than the program, and I include that too.
“We have the opportunity. There are a lot of people in Tennessee who are trying to put their all in. We're moving forward. We've got a great group. Let's compete.”
According to ESPN, the 2026 first round NFL Draft Picks hoped to renegotiate a $10 million deal with the school.
Tennessee has noticed that the Iamaleava camp has contacted Oregon about a potential relocation, the report said.
Volunteers search for another quarterback (potentially a starter) on the portal, but they played Saturday's Spring Game with two scholarship quarterbacks: redshirt freshman Jake Mecklinger and true freshman George McIntyre are backups.
“That's a shame. It's just a situation and where we're with Nico,” Hepel told reporters after the spring game. “He's here and I want to thank him for everything he's done.”
Hepel, former Oklahoma State Hemel, runner-up at the Heisman Trophy, said he tried to reach his current quarterback several times after an unexpected no-show on Friday, but still didn't talk to him.
It was clear that the relationship had ended at that point, and Huepel spoke to his players about the split before Saturday's scrimmage.
“You're out of your practice field and you don't have communication,” Hapel said.
