EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsCHICAGO -- On the brink of having his third coach at UCLA in the span of just one calendar year, quarterback Nico Iamaleava did not want to go back into the transfer portal for a second straight season.So once the Bruins' season concluded, Iamaleava decided to sit back and wait. And when UCLA hired former James Madison coach Bob Chesney to be their next head coach, he and Iamaleava immediately clicked, making Iamaleava's decision an easy one."The transfer portal was never where I wanted to be," Iamaleava said at Big Ten media days Wednesday. "First meeting, we got on the same page and everything was good and we're here now."For Chesney, retaining Iamaleava was one of his top priorities, but as he found out soon after spending time around him, the fact that Iamaleava was home meant he was not interested in making another leap to a different school and starting over yet again. Chesney's arrival only solidified Iamaleava's choice."He did not want to go anywhere," Chesney said. "This is where he wanted to be."Once he was hired Chesney brought five coaches and 10 players with him from JMU, but he knew that the quarterback position was a sensitive one and that it would better serve the team if there was some short-term continuity."Your quarterback needs to be your leader, and when you bring in an outsider, obviously, there's some friction that might occur at moments," Chesney told ESPN. "Having [Iamaleava] already present in that community, in that school, all the things that come with it, I think he finally had a chance to just let his guard down and be like, 'All right, we got a program. We're stable now. Let's do this thing.'"During his first season in Westwood, Iamaleava threw for 1,928 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions as the Bruins went 3-9 and fired head coach DeShaun Foster after just three games."It was a lot going on last year," Iamaleava said. "Last year was just moving very fast for me. ... There's nothing I would change. I'm blessed to be in the position I am now. Everything happens for a reason, so it was a great learning year for me."Going into this season, Chesney said he has seen a marked growth in Iamaleava, not just as a quarterback but as a leader for the Bruins. He was voted the leader and captain of the team by the leadership council Chesney formed "by a large margin" and has been one of the standouts early on.Iamaleava said he is looking forward to having a more stable situation this season, given the noise that surrounded his departure from Tennessee last year as well as the tumultuous campaign in Westwood once he arrived."This year definitely feels more comfortable," Iamaleava said. "I'm comfortable at home. I feel better about it this year mentally and physically."The excitement that Chesney has injected into the program since his arrival did not just help retain Iamaleava, but it has also been felt already by a Bruins fanbase that has welcomed him with open arms."They've been through other scenarios where a new coach comes in, and this happens or doesn't happen," Chesney said of the fanbase. "They need to know this time it's different and the work that's gonna go into it is gonna be relentless."
